You'll Be In My Heart
by Maire Grey
Summary: Third in my series, but can be read alone. Sarah and Jareth are married and running the Goblin Kingdom. They've been lucky enough to become pregnant and Jareth has found ways to communicate with his daughter magically. But, this is no ordinary baby. She's a time traveler. Sarah has already met her before she even became pregnant. How will they handle such a unique child?
1. Can You Hear Me

_Book three of a series _

You'll Be In My Heart

First things first: most of the characters in my stories belong to Jim Henson, not to me.

Remember, this has an M rating. So there will be smut. (I really hate that word. I shall have to find another for the future.) I think these two lovers deserve to enjoy one another. Even though Sarah is pregnant, they can definitely still have hot, crazy, wild sex. Even toward the end of the last term, when one just has to be creative. (Something Jareth has never had difficulty with.) I wanted to show that expectant mothers can be beautiful and desirable.

I didn't mean to create a series, but the characters have come to life for me, and are demanding that I keep things going as they are. Therefore, this is the third installment in the series. Sarah and Jareth are pregnant with their first child. Not an easy thing to do if one is an Immortal. However, this isn't just any child. In the second book, Sarah has already met her when she was about three years old and Sarah was not even pregnant yet. She has met her as a teenager during her coronation. The baby is a time traveler, and has the ability to travel back-and-forth in time. This, as you can imagine, makes for some very interesting problems for S and J. Her name is Saoirse (SERE-sha), a name which means independence or freedom.

Enough of that, now. Let's begin:

"When we follow our hearts, when we choose not to settle. It's funny, isn't it? A weight lifts, the sun shines a little brighter, and for a brief moment, we find a little peace." - Sarah O'Rourke

Sarah was sitting on a sofa in the living room, looking out the window. In her lap was one book, and next to her was an intimidating pile of others. The book on her lap was called What to Expect When You Are Expecting, designed to let pregnant mothers know about their bodily changes, what the baby should be doing at what stage, and what to expect at birth.

She was vacillating between relief and horror. Jareth had gotten her all of these books when she had first told him about the baby. He was so excited that he had gone Above and purchased every book he could imagine that she might find useful.

On the one hand, these books were answering questions that she had about the process. On the other, she felt this incredible closeness with her baby already. Each seemed to know what the other needed, and seemed to almost send thoughts to one another. She did not know if this was because her baby was half Fae and her mother an Immortal, but the close connection could not be denied and was comforting to Sarah.

Some of the physical aspects, mostly of giving birth, seriously made her terrified. However, something told her that her body would know what to do, that women had been successfully bearing children for hundreds of thousands of years. She would have Ixonia and her new training with her, as well as Dr. Matthews, a pediatric surgeon, from Above. She had told Jareth that a simple obstetrician would be fine, but he was taking no chances. She smiled. She knew he would be a good father, but she couldn't believe how tender and loving he was with both of them.

As if he knew she was thinking about him, he strolled into the library and laid down on the sofa, his head in her lap. "So," he began, "What have we learned from all of our reading so far?"

She laughed. Jareth was starting to read some of the books too. "Well, she's about this big," and she held her finger and thumb apart roughly 3 inches. "And her fingers and toes are no longer webbed. So she's not going to be a frog."

Jareth chuckled. "Well, so much for the frog princess." He turned his head and kissed Sarah's belly. "All I know is that you are going to be gorgeous, little girl."

"Of course she will be," smiled Sarah. "Just look at her parents!" Jareth reached one arm up and tickled her.

"And how about Mama? Anything new going on with you, love, besides bearing the fruit of my loins?"

She made a face and shook her head. "Please don't use that expression again. It's kind of disgusting."

"And, besides my breasts getting huge," and here Jareth made an appreciative 'Mmmm' sound, "I think it's safe to consider sharing the news with friends now, not just family. I'm also talking to Ixonia about some safe and gentle exercise options. We can bond with our little one by talking to and singing to her, or listening to our favorite music together. Soon she'll be able to hear us!"

Jareth had started talking to the baby already. He turned his head back toward Sarah's small bump and said, "Don't listen to that. We both know you're gifted. You could hear me ages ago." Sarah laughed. Goodnight Moon was his favorite thing to read to her right now, before he and Sarah went to bed. Or he would spin wild, fanciful tales of his own. Sarah marveled at his imagination.

He looked up at Sarah and winked. "Any requests?"

"Are you going to be singing again?"

"You know you love my voice," he grinned.

She leant down and kissed his forehead. "Just, no more dirty drinking songs. She shouldn't be listening to that. And I'm not crazy about them either," she added.

"What?" He pretended to look offended. "No more 'Kilted For Her Pleasure' or 'Bugger Off'?"

"Absolutely not."

He gave an exaggerated sigh. "Fine. But I'm not singing any stupid bloody nursery rhymes. I find them demeaning to both parent and child."

Sarah sighed tolerantly. "How about one of your own songs?"

Jareth's eyes lit up. "How about 'Magic Dance'? I know she'll love that one!"

"I think she would, but it's going to get her all worked up, and I'd like to take a nap soon. What about 'As the World Falls Down'? "I've always loved that song."

His eyes widened as he looked up at her. "Really?"

"Really. What girl in her right mind could _not_ fall for a magical king that could dance like that, and look like you?"

"I knew it! You did have a crush on me back then! You cheeky little minx!"

"I just didn't want you thinking I'd be so easily impressed by some knight in shining… whatever."

He reached up to kiss her and then said, "Just remember, I'll always be your king in shining whatever."

He reached for her hand, his thumb gently tracing circles on the back of it. He began softly:

"There's such a sad love

Deep in your eyes

A kind of pale jewel

Open and closed

Within your eyes

I'll place the sky

Within your eyes

There's such a fooled heart

Beatin' so fast

In search of new dreams

A love that will last

Within your heart

I'll place the moon

Within your heart – "

Sarah's head was leaning back against the sofa, her eyes were closed, listening to the beautiful and poignant song written just for her. Suddenly, several things hit her at once. She had married the love of her life, they were pregnant, which was not easy for Immortals, and this man was so gentle and kind, she was so glad that she hadn't settled for some of the other guys she had dated in high school and college. Hadn't settled for her first world. It was overwhelming. She couldn't help it - big, fat tears started to roll down her cheeks. One of them plopped on Jareth's face.

Immediately he sat up and took her in his arms. "What's wrong?" He asked. "Is my voice that bad?"

She laughed through her tears. "No, love, your voice is perfect. The song is perfect. Our life is perfect. I just can't believe I'm so lucky. I think the hormones are kicking in again or something…"

Leaning back, he held her face in both hands so they could easily see one another. "So you're crying because you feel your life is too perfect," she sniffled and nodded yes.

"I don't know that I've ever said this to you exactly this way," she began, "but I always thought that there was something wrong with me. And I always wanted to run, until I met you. You're so different and unique that you make me make sense. You and me, we just fit. And I don't want to leave you. I never want to go _anywhere_ without you." She sniffed.

"And you won't ever have to, love. You know, those raging hormones of yours have some good qualities, too." And he moved forward to give her the softest, slowest, most sensual of kisses, lightly tracing the inside of her lips with his tongue.

Those hormones certainly were going insane. Slowly she brought her fingertips to her lips. Her heart was beating so fast, looking at him, with his beautiful smile and the planes of his face; feeling him, breathing in his scent; she wanted him so badly. She stood up and took his hand.

"Let's go!" she said, pulling him toward the Royal Chambers, softly laughing.

Once they were there, she gave him a quick kiss, and said "Why don't you get into bed? I'll be right back." And she headed for the dressing room.

Jareth couldn't strip down fast enough and jumped in between the sheets. He held a corner of one up, and looked at it critically. It was a very fine linen, but it just didn't have the texture he was looking for. So - he snapped his fingers, and the sheets became silken.

Sarah stepped out of the dressing room in a satin teddy. She had taken her hair down and brushed it out, and when Jareth saw her his eyes widened. She had a slow seductive smile, and her breasts, while always perfect, were now much larger and rounder.

"Get. Over. Here." Jareth growled.

Sarah just stood there, looking delicious, and twirling a lock of her hair innocently.

She ran her tongue over her bottom lip. Slowly she crawled onto the bed toward him. She straddled him and he could feel that she had no panties on. When he tried to say something, she put a finger to his lips.

He reached both hands around her and cupped a tight round bottom. She sighed and bent down to kiss him. His lips were soft, and she delicately traced the inside of his lower lip with her tongue. Then she softly nipped it. She could feel the rumble of a chuckle in his chest.

He slid his hands along her back, over her ribs and reached around front to hold those beautiful heavy breasts. He heard her sharp intake of breath when he touched her nipples. Pushing the teddy up, he leaned up, his lips circled one of her nipples, and then began to suck on it. She gasped. As though he couldn't get enough, he took her other breast in his hand, his other hand gently pushing her toward him on her back.

She could feel the glow between her legs begin to rise. Her legs began to tremble. The heat of his tongue exploring her forcefully was both delicious and agonizing. She drove her hands into his soft thick hair and held his head to her breast. With a deep sound in the back of his throat he suddenly rolled her onto her back so they had changed positions.

He quietly laughed at her look of surprise. Sometimes she was still startled by his speed and strength. He looked down into her eyes. "Are you all right?" he asked, huskily.

She stared back at him, a small smile on her lips. "Never better."

There was so much fire between them. She needed him _now_. As he gently slipped partway inside of her she arched her back.

Making sure to hold all of his weight up on his arms, he asked her "Is this all right?" She laughed and pulled him closer, tighter.

"This is better than all right. We can do this for months," she said. "And even when I'm further along, I can still be on top!"

As he slipped his length further into her, he bit her neck and she cried out. He palmed one of her nipples, smoothly thrusting into her due to her wetness. He rolled his hips as he came down, and she bit her hand to keep from crying out.

He noticed. "What's this?" He asked, gently pulling her hand away. "You know I love to hear you at times like this. Scream away!"

She let out a deep breath, gave a wicked smile and arched as she felt him enter her again. She audibly gasped this time.

He reached one hand down between them, slightly parting her aching folds. When he found the spot, he circled it with his thumb then rubbing it up and down, all the while slowly thrusting inside her.

"Jareth," she begged. "Please."

He grinned add her with his crooked smile. "Please what, love?"

"Don't stop. Please don't…" And like a well played musical symphony, she swelled into a breathtaking climax, her body shaking as he mercilessly drove himself into her center, creating waves upon waves that never seems to end.

She could feel him burst inside her. The look of release on his beautiful face aroused her so much it almost made her

almost made her come again.

He collapsed upon her, while still using his arms to keep much of his weight off her because of the baby. She buried her hands into his thick hair and reached up to kiss him, mewing as she did so.

She could feel him smile under her kiss. When they finally broke away, he said, "See? I can still get cat noises out of you!"

She purred at him.


	2. The Days We've Yet To Meet

"Picture the life you dreamed of living. Are you living the life you envisioned for yourself? Are you who you wanted to be when you grew up?" – Sarah O'Rourke

When Jareth awoke the next morning, he headed to the library for a cup of coffee and his newspaper. He noticed that Sarah had left without waking him and wondered where she was.

He opened the door and almost stepped on a baby rabbit in the hallway. He picked it up and looked into its face. One can be a powerful, frightening Goblin King and still appreciate the adorableness of a baby bunny.

Then he noticed that there were more. Probably at least ten in the hallway, to be exact. Once he entered the library, he found even more. They were of all colors and sizes. They were also all cute. He was wondering where they had come from and how to put them back there when Sarah entered the room. Her eyes were wild as she glanced around, seeing all of the rabbits.

"Damnit! It's still not working!" Then she dashed out of the room before Jareth could say anything.

He finally found her by following the trail of rabbits out the French doors into the garden. She was sitting there, expertly flicking one wrist, palm up, just as he did when he created a crystal. Except that she wasn't creating crystals. She was creating cute little bunnies which she would set down gently and then began to try to begin another crystal. She was frustrated but relentless. He was impressed with the hundreds of rabbits all over the garden. Her eyes were brimming with tears, but she kept trying.

He smiled at her fondly, and approached her from behind. Gently he rested his hands on her shoulders, leaned down and kissed her on the cheek. "Morning love. I can see you're hard at work practicing your magic today."

"Are you making fun of me?" She glared up at him.

"Absolutely not! Darling, do you have any idea at all how very, very long it took me to perfect crystals? May I suggest that you start with something a little less – – involved."

She slouched down in the chair and crossed her arms, a stubborn, petulant look on her face. Jareth laughed inwardly.

"What do you suggest?" Her voice was like ice.

"How about telekinesis? I've seen you do it before." He kept his voice light and neutral. "We can move some things on the table first, and then try larger things for longer distances." He balanced a teaspoon on one finger and held it in front of her. "Okay, make it do something. Anything. Knock it off, make it fall. Make it fly. Make it rock back-and-forth."

As she focused her large green eyes on the spoon he took a few seconds to admire her beautiful profile, thick dark hair, and sweet face. He could not believe how lucky he was. While he was daydreaming, the spoon suddenly went flying through the air– a good ten feet.

They stared at one another. "That's it!" He said proudly, "Let's keep going. This time I'd like you to try the sugar bowl," carefully securing the lid tightly onto the bowl. They both stepped away from the table and he put both hands on her shoulders again. "You are incredibly tight." he said, massaging her shoulders. "If you concentrate **too** hard you're going to think yourself right out of this."

She bent her neck back-and-forth, listening to the cracking – a satisfying sound. She stretched out her back and shoulders and Jareth helped by running his healing hands down her back - kneading up and down her muscles. She could feel the golden warmth of his hands.

"Okay."

"Okay? Ready? Take a breath."

She took a deep breath and smoothly slid the sugar bowl across the table. She squealed, jumped up and gave Jareth a high five while he smiled indulgently at her.

They moved into the vegetable part of the garden, where she levitated things as heavy as very large pumpkins. She was absolutely high on her own success.

"Jareth?" She asked him as they headed back to the castle, hand-in-hand.

"Yes, love?"

She turned to him, and impish grin came over her face. "Can I try moving some goblins?"

Jareth laughed. A loud deep, laugh. "I can absolutely see that! This could be great fun! Let's go."

In the throne room was a grubby nest of goblins, still sleepy and hungover from the night before. Normally, they did have their own homes, but on occasion didn't always get to them.

Sarah looked at Jareth and winked. The topmost goblin, Dogbreath, was slowly lifted off the pile by the seat of his pants, almost to the ceiling. By the time he woke and discovered this, he let out a gleeful shriek of delight. Sarah gently lowered him back to the floor.

Jareth had picked up the next one, Brownnose, and sent him tumbling, head over heels in the air. He set him headfirst into a planter, where they could hear him giggling madly.

Suddenly they were surrounded by a small mob of goblins, all tugging on their clothes and jumping up and down asking to be flown about the room.

Sarah and Jareth obliged for about half an hour. Then, to the goblins' great disappointment, they left the throne room to get coffee in the library. Sarah's eyes were shining.

Jareth sat back on the sofa, settling his boots on the coffee table. He patted the seat next to him and Sarah joined him. He twisted his wrist and two cups of coffee appeared.

Sarah reached for hers gratefully. "Thank you for this morning. There's so much that I want to do, and – "

"And I do feel badly about that," interrupted Jareth. "I promised you that I would tutor you in magic once you became an Immortal, and truly, I have done very little. There have been so many meetings with the leaders of other kingdoms regarding a possible Formorian resurgence that I'm afraid it has occupied most of my thoughts these days."

She rested her head on his shoulder, inhaling his Jareth scent of leather and vetiver.

Suddenly she jumped. Jareth jumped too, looking at her, concerned.

She let out a deep breath, smiling. Silently taking Jareth's hand, she rested it on the left half of her growing belly. In a few seconds, he looked at his hand and then looked into Sarah's eyes. A broad smile crossed his face. "Is that…?"

She nodded. "That's her," she said proudly. "She's exercising. I am also discovering that she likes to hop around when I'm trying to sleep."

Jareth was recalling some things that he had read in one of the pregnancy books. The baby was now around 10 inches long, and just starting to open her eyes. The reason Sarah could feel her so early was because she was so slender. Now, if the baby could open her eyes…

"Do you think she can see light yet?" He asked Sarah.

"I'm not sure. Maybe that's why she's so active at night time, when it's dark."

Jareth expertly flicked his wrist and created a crystal.

"Show off," said Sarah.

He gave her the Jareth toothy grin, and the sphere lit up. Gracefully rolling it over his knuckles, he moved his hand over Sarah's belly as he watched and waited.

The baby swam like a little fish and followed the light.

Sarah and Jareth's eyes met in a shared look of wonderment and delight.

This time Jareth twirled the crystal toward the other side of Sarah's belly. The baby swam quickly after it, chasing it. It moved so fast that Sarah placed her hand there and gasped.

"You're all right?" asked Jareth.

"I'm fine. It just feels so – weird. To have something inside of you, that's a part of you, moving around of its own accord. It's sort of ticklish, and just – weird."

Jareth bent down to talk to Sarah's belly. "Don't listen to her, little girl. There's nothing weird about you. Unique, of course, but never weird."

"Even though your father is the Goblin King and plays with strange creatures all day…" Sarah said to her growing bump.

"She's going to ignore that," responded Jareth. "She knows that her Daddy is a powerful, magical, and great king who strikes fear into the hearts of many."

"That he does," said Sarah. "But Mommy is not one of them. Mommy knows that Daddy has a soft, chewy center, that he doesn't let most people see."

Jareth stared at her. "Soft chewy center?! You make me sound like a chocolate! That is no way to speak of your king!" And he reached over and began tickling Sarah all over, especially between her neck and shoulders, where he knew she couldn't take it.

Sarah was curled up, and laughing so hard that she could barely breathe. "Soft. Chewy. Center!" she taunted.

"Disrespectful little wench! I have a lesson or two to teach you, I see! Oof!"

He had been hit in the back by a flying book. He swatted another one away that was following close behind. Looking at Sarah, he arched one blonde brow. "I take it that was you? Pretty sure of yourself now, aren't you?"

Sarah could not look at his face without laughing. She grabbed a pillow and cackled into it.

Jareth snatched the pillow away from her face and went in for a very slow, deep kiss. What he got was a bite as Sarah was still laughing at him. This time, she shrieked with laughter.

"M'sorry! I can't help it! Those books just did that on their own!"

Jareth barely heard her as he was suddenly fending off attacks from flying sofa pillows. "These damned pillows! Why do you insist on all of these stupid pillows! Nobody needs — oof — this many pillows anyway! Aurgh!"

Sarah took mercy on him and halted her pillow onslaught.

"For one thing, they're pretty. For another, they make the room more cozy. And thirdly, I've just discovered that they can be a valuable weapon in the right hands!"

As she looked at him, he slitted his eyes at her and gave an evil grin. She had no time to do anything other than squeal when he jumped on top of her.


	3. Everything In Its Own Time

"I've heard that its possible to grow up - I just haven't met anyone who's done it. Without parents to defy, we break the rules we make for ourselves. We throw tantrums when things don't go our way. We whisper secrets with our best friends in the dark. We look for comfort where we can find it. And we hope...against all logic...all experience. Like children, we never give up hope." Sarah O'Rourke

The next morning, Jareth kissed a sleeping Sarah on her forehead, and made his way to the washroom for a shower and shave.

When he returned, a familiar sight caught his eye. His sister Eimile, and Sarah's best friend, were lying together in bed talking.

Spam, one of the more intelligent goblins, was Sarah's lady in waiting, as well as Sarah's self appointed groupie, and she was also there. Knees crossed, sitting at the bottom of the bed and concentrating as she finger knitted, another skill that Sarah had taught her.

Jareth had to smile when he saw the bow in Spam's fine, sparse hair. It was Sarah's, and doubtless Sarah had given it to her. Doubtless also, this gift would remain precious to Spam for the rest of her life. Queen Sarah could do no wrong in Spam's eyes. She positively adored her.

As they were staring up at the ceiling, Sarah and Eimile had no idea that Jareth was in the room. Sarah was talking.

"….And it's not about the sex, it's NOT about the sex. It's about that moment afterward, when the world stops. It just feels so safe. SO safe. I don't ever want to give that up. Does that make me sad and weak and pathetic?"

"Of course not," replied Eimile. "You and my brother are perfect for one another. You both waited for that one perfect love and that's what makes you happy. Me, I don't need anyone. I'm a strong, independent, successful woman all on my own."

Sarah's response was tinged with irritation. "So – you're saying I am _not_ strong and independent because I love someone? Do you really believe that?"

Jareth was grinning. Interesting how much one could learn by eavesdropping. He decided to make his presence known.

He took a graceful flying leap and landed on the bed next to Sarah. "Of course she doesn't, love. She's just becoming a bitter old maid and trying to convince herself that it's okay." He leaned up with one elbow on the bed, giving Eimile an evil smirk.

Without even looking at him, she lazily raised her hand in an obscene gesture.

"All I'm saying is that some people are just fine being single, just like some people are fine being a couple. Me, I _choose_ to be single. It doesn't mean I don't have my choice of men – I do. I'm hot. I'm hot in lingerie. I'm hot without clothes on. I'm a hot person."

Jareth snorted. Sarah wanted to change the subject. She reached for Jareth's hand and placed it on her growing belly. "She seems to really respond when she hears your voice," she said.

Continuing to lean up on one elbow, Jareth looked down into her face and smiled. "Squirrelly little fish, isn't she?"

"Is she moving?" asked Eimile. "Let me feel!" Then she looked at Sarah's face and said, "If that's okay with you. I know most women don't like just anyone grabbing their tummies when they're pregnant."

Sarah smiled and put Eimile's hand on her bump. She was thrilled with the look of amazement on Eimile's face.

"There's like, a wee person in there!" Eimile mused. "I'm really going to be an auntie!"

"The crazy auntie," drawled Jareth.

"Eccentric auntie," Eimile corrected. "_Everyone_ needs a fun, eccentric auntie. Oh my gosh, the fun things I'll be able to teach her!"

"The _last_ thing I want is you turning her into a little version of you," warned Jareth. "_You're_ the one who gave mother and father the grey hair!"

Eimile shook her head. "Coming from one half of the evil twins. You and Finn were the terrors of the village! Even father was frustrated enough to throw you two into the oubliette for a while!"

"Wha – what?" asked Sarah. " I never heard this before! What kind of hellion _were_ you?"

Eimile winked at her. "Tell her the story about you tipping Mr. Mooney's privy over one night with him in it!" (Not everyone in the village could afford indoor plumbing.)

Jareth waved her away. "Rumours, just rumours. No one can prove that."

"Except for Mr. Mooney, who was able to identify both of you as you ran away!"

Sarah stared at him. Yet another juvenile delinquent Jareth story. Although it _was_ funny, she sincerely hoped their daughter wouldn't inherit these tendencies.

Jareth sat up, ready to change the subject. "Shall we have breakfast, love?" he asked. She nodded and Jareth helped her out of bed, as the growing bump was making movement more difficult.

Eimile sat up and stretched. "Time for me to go. I can't handle the smell of the murdered animals you choose to eat for breakfast." Eimile had been a vegan ever since returning from her time up at University.

"Is that all it takes to keep you away?" Asked Jareth. "If that's the case, I'll keep the kitchen cooking meat all day long!"

Sarah swatted at him. "So, Eimile, you'll meet me this afternoon for magic lessons?"

"Yep. I'll bring my hot self over around 13 o'clock. I don't think you're ready for transporting yet, but your telekinesis is excellent. We can work on discovering your therianthropic animal form and how to put it to best use."

She got up, and tousled Jareth's hair as she walked out of the room. "Later, Sarah. Bye, Chickenhead."

~~~Ó~~~

Eimile strolled back into the castle early that afternoon. She accepted the tea that Sarah offered and they sat down in the library to get to business.

"I have a theory as to what your therianthropic form is, but I'm not going to say anything until we know for sure. Did you bring the mirror? And the candle and saucer of water?"

Sarah nodded yes to all three. This was exciting. She had had some physical changes since becoming immortal: she was stronger, her endurance was greater, her mind was quicker, and she had been highly intelligent before. In addition, her hearing and sight had greatly improved.

Eimile positioned the candle on the table right in front of Sarah, then went to the windows and pulled shut the heavy velvet curtains so the room was dark but for the candlelight.

"Now," said Eimile, "We're going to do some flame work. My favourite form of scrying, which is a form of divination, is a sort of self hypnosis using flame. What I want you to do is gaze into the flame without really seeing it. It's called softening your gaze. If you do it long enough and can focus, it should allow you some visual cues. You gaze at the candlelight until you're not really seeing the light as much as a sort of aura around it, if that makes sense."

Sarah was paying careful attention and nodded.

"Ready?"

"Yes," she replied. "I'm ready."

"One more thing," reminded Eimile. "You can take as much time as you need. There's no rush. And if we need to do it again, we will. Right after or during the process, I want you to tell me what you see and I'm going to write it down. Even if it doesn't seem to make sense."

Sarah leant back on the sofa and focused her eyes on the flame, trying to soften her gaze. It took about a minute, but eventually she was able to see a coriolis moving around the flame. She could see many tall trees. She could see small objects moving in and out between those trees. Occasionally, she would lose focus and her eyes would only see the flame. But she was always able to regain that softening so that she could see the coriolis and the trees and creatures within it. She explained this in detail to Eimile, who wrote it down.

"Could you tell what the creatures were that were flying over the tops of the trees?" questioned Eimile.

"Not clearly. But I think they were birds, as I could see wings. And in my head I heard a whisper. It kept saying, "Listen for spirit.'"

"Okay, good. Now pour the melted wax into the water that's in the saucer. We should see a shape or a figure that is meaningful."

Sarah picked up the candle and dripped the melted wax directly onto the center of the saucer. The figure that it created was so detailed that both she and Eimile gasped.

"I thought so," whispered Eimile to herself.

"Now stand in front of the mirror," Eimile dictated.

Sarah made her way to the tall standing mirror that had been brought down by the servants. Although there was little light in the room, her reflection begin to glow white. In time the details filled themselves in.

Standing behind Sarah was a very large barn owl, taller than her, with wings wrapped protectively around her.

"How perfect for the wife of the king," said Eimile.


	4. Come As You Are

**I would like to thank those of you who have taken the time to write reviews. I truly appreciate them! I listen, and I've gotten some great ideas, and I'm finding out what readers appreciate. So,****Go**** raibh míle maith agat****! (Thank you very much!)**

**Maire**

**~~~Ó~~~**

Sarah was breathless, standing, looking at the shimmering image in the mirror behind and around her.

Eimile came from behind her and clasped her shoulders. "Congratulations, my sister," she whispered. "This owl is only born to a true Fae, and only a Royal at that. This truly says something strong and powerful about your character."

Sara felt both humbled and proud of that recognition.

"Even if you don't feel it," said Eimile, "You have expended much energy in scrying today. Otherwise, I would suggest that we try manifesting your owl. But that can be for another day. However, I know we'll all be meeting at my parents' home for dinner this evening. Would you like to make that announcement then?"

Sarah nodded. "Yes. This is so exciting!"

"It is! I cannot wait to see my brother's face when he gets the news!"

Sarah glanced at the clock."I should really shower and dress for that soon," she said.

"As should I," commented Eimile. "I'll see myself out."

When Sarah entered the Royal bed chamber, she could hear Jareth in the bathroom, brushing his teeth. He was standing shirtless, in front of the mirror when she came in.

"Mmmm," she purred, as she stood behind him and wrapped her arms around his lean, muscled chest. Her hands slid down to his pelvic muscles as she leaned her head against his back.

"That," he said, disentangling himself from her, "Is exactly what we _cannot_ do right now. — I cannot believe I just said that," he muttered, looking up at the ceiling. "We are already going to be running late for dinner. I _am_ going to take that as a rain check for this evening though," he added, heading for the shower. "I've started your bath for you, love," nodding toward the tub as he stepped into the shower.

She didn't think so.

Slipping out of her dress and underthings, she stepped into the shower with him. His back was to her, so he was startled as she began kissing him there.

He turned around slowly, his eyes taking in every inch of her, and he sighed, biting his lower lip.

"It seems I recall someone, I forget exactly whom, saying 'It's not fair!'quite often," he mused. "I'd say that this is quite unfair," he smiled.

She loved his smile. God, he was irresistible!

"Why don't I help you wash your hair?" he offered. He knew that she loved that.

"That would be wonderful," she said. If he thought that that would be all she wanted from him, he was greatly mistaken.

Turning her back to him, she ducked her head under the water until it was soaked. Jareth already had a handful of shampoo. Rubbing his hands together, he applied it and begin scrubbing gently at her scalp. He loved running his hands through his wife's thick dark hair, wet or dry. She arched her back, forming an S shape and pushing her bottom toward him.

She heard him quietly hiss, and knew that she had made her mark when she felt something from behind.

"I believe something is poking me in the back," she murmured seductively.

His voice was husky."It would seem I've been betrayed by my own body. I hate when that happens." She could hear the smile in his voice.

He reached around her and cupped both breasts in his hands, rolling her nipples with his thumbs while sucking at the base of her neck, where it met her shoulder.

"But aren't we going to be late?" She teased.

She gasped as he pinched her nipples. "Late for what?" He growled into her ear.

~~~Ó~~~

Well over an hour later, Sarah had finished applying her make up and doing her hair. Standing hands on hips, she looked critically into her armoire. Jareth passed behind her, already dressed. He gave her a quick nip on her earlobe.

"How about the dusty blue velvet?" He suggested.

She laughed and swatted at him. "You only like that one because it makes these ridiculous boobs of mine look even bigger! This is a family dinner, with your parents!"

She finally settled on a lavender silk, that revealed her shoulders, but swept to the ground without revealing her ever increasing curves. Jareth pouted when he saw her.

"I'll wear that dusty blue one for you later," she smiled. "Let's go. I have an announcement to make."

~~~Ó~~~

They were greeted at Jareth's parents door by Charles, an uncommonly tall Fae who served as head butler. Despite Jareth's mother's suggestions, Jareth had no butler and did not want one. He had grown up with Charles, however, and they were old friends.

"Good evening, your Majesty," said Charles, bowing deeply. He turned toward Sarah. "Good evening, your majesty."

"Seriously, Charles?" Jareth arched one fabulous brow.

Charles stood stock still, facing forward. "Regal formality and all that," he smiled slightly.

Jareth chuckled, slapped him on the back and strolled into the main foyer. Charles had followed them so that he could announce their arrival. Jareth smiled and silently waved the older man off.

They made their way to the reception room, where everyone would be having cocktails before dinner. Sarah was impressed, as always, at the warmth and elegance of Brielle's home. She made a mental note to ask her for some ideas for the castle.

As they entered, she could see Jareth's mother's back was to them. She was laughing at something that Cillian, Jareth's father, had said. As if this were something routine, Cillian reached for Brielle's glass. Before she could register this, Jareth came up from behind her, grabbing her around the waist, and swinging her around in a circle.

"Jareth!" laughed his beautiful mother. "Where is your sense of decorum?"

"Don't believe I ever had one," Jareth thought aloud. "Must've left it somewhere. Probably at the bottom of the oubliette or something." He winked at his father.

Cillian caught this and smirked. It was exactly like seeing an older version of Jareth. Sarah felt her heart swell.

"Put your mother down, Jareth, so she can finish her sherry." He looked at Sarah.

"And my beautiful daughter in law. Welcome! I believe that you become lovelier and lovelier each time that I see you. What can I get you to drink?"

She smiled as he kissed her on both cheeks. "Hello, Cillian. It's always good to see you. May I have another of those wonderful lavender tonics you make?"

He grinned, gave a mock bow, and left to make one for her. Sarah felt an arm around her waist as Brielle kissed her cheek warmly. "Sarah darling," she said. "I agree with Cillian. You are positively glowing!"

"Which is remarkable considering who she's married to," said Eimile. She had a cocktail plate of shrimp and was popping them down, one after the other in rapid succession.

"Any shrimp left for the rest of us?" drawled Jareth. "I'm impressed. I've never seen them go down _that_ quickly since I went whale watching."

Eimile stared up at the ceiling and sighed painfully. Then she smiled brightly at her mother. "Did you see that there? Did you see me _not_ stabbing him in the neck with the fire poker?"

Charles appeared at just that moment to announce that dinner was served. The family went into the dining room. Sarah was seated next to Eimile on her right, who grabbed her wrist and whispered, "Are you ready?"

Sarah nodded as Cillian stood up from the head of the table, glass in hand. "I'd like to give a toast to our growing family, to tell Sarah at least one more time how much we love her, and how fortunate we are to be welcoming this wee one into our family."

Everyone clinked glasses, and Sarah said, "I have some news of my own to share as well."

Everyone turned to her. She felt her cheeks grow warm. Shyly looking down at her plate, she said, "Eimile and I discovered my therianthropic animal form today. It's an owl."

But Eimile couldn't contain herself. "Tell them what _kind_ of owl, Sarah! This is positively huge!"

Sarah felt Jareth's reassuring hand on her thigh and looked up at him. "It's a barn owl."

His eyes grew large, then he grasped her tightly in his arms. She looked around the table. All of the O'Rourkes had the barn owl as their magical animal form. This meant she was really and truly part of them.

Brielle's eyes were misted. Jareth looked thrilled. Cillian was smiling benignly at her.

"Only a Royal and a true Fae can manifest that creature," said Cillian, seriously.

"And only my formerly human wife could do that. Yet another incredible feat. To Queen Sarah!" Jareth toasted. Everyone followed suit. Sarah smiled, hoping for the hundredth time that she could live up to everyone's expectations of her.

After dinner, Brielle asked Sarah into a sitting room much like the one at the castle. She pulled down a large tome. It was an illustrated manuscript of the O'Rourke family. Lavish decorations and illustrations illuminated each page. Intricate Celtic spirals, knots and crosses joined animals, plants and humans to stunningly illustrate the family's heritage.

She set the heavy book in Sarah's lap. Leafing through it, she was amazed at the artwork, history, and records within. It would truly take her years to read this entire book. Brielle turned to a page near the beginning. It featured a gorgeous picture of a barn owl flying - looking as though it were going to fly out of the page toward the reader. It was so majestic and lifelike that it took Sarah's breath away.

Suddenly, Sarah audibly gasped. The owl _was_ moving, wings slowly and gracefully flapping. It met her eyes. Sarah was stunned. She looked questioningly into Brielle's eyes.

Brielle nodded. "You see it, don't you?"

Sarah nodded. "That is because you are a true O'Rourke, Royalty, and magical being." She then took the book into her own lap and read the text, which was in such ancient Irish that Sarah couldn't begin to make sense of it.

Brielle began in her beautiful lilt:

"At times, in order to strengthen one sense, we need to dampen another. We are very used to approaching the world through our eyes. We often need to see something with our own eyes in order to believe. The Barn Owl reminds us that sight isn't the only way to connect. Intuition and inner knowing can't be seen with the eyes."

She continued, "On a dark moon night, Barn Owl swoops low over the fields. Her wingbeats are not only nearly silent but create a wake of quietude, a vortex of otherness. Crossing her path feels like crossing over into elsewhere. And so, Barn Owl has long been a Messenger between the worlds, bringing word from the realm of spirit. Barn Owl hunts even on the darkest of nights, her ears picking up the small chattering of mice and the soft sound of grass brushing against a rabbit hide… or maybe she simply senses their souls as they go about their nightly business. _Close your eyes,_ Barn Owl whispers, _and open your ears to the sound of spirit."_

Sarah stared at Brielle. "There was a voice in my head when I saw the owl in the mirror," she said. "It told me to listen to the sound of spirit!"

Brielle nodded knowingly, the faintest trace of a smile on her lips. "Then you must listen to that message,"she said quietly.

~~~Ó~~~

Barn Owl lore from Maia Toll, The Illustrated Bestiary

According to ancient Celtic history, the barn owl is a creature who can travel freely between worlds. (Earth and the Otherworld/Underworld.) Unfortunately, because it is a nighttime creature, and primitive people did not know much about it, it was often regarded as an evil symbol of death and occasionally barn owls were nailed to a barn door in order to keep bad spirits away. This practice continued until the 1950s, when people learned more about this fascinating bird and its true meaning.


	5. It Won't Take Long

As Sarah and Jareth left his parents' manor house, Eimile promised to be there early the next day, to work with Sarah on manifesting her owl. They walked home, as the manor was not far and the night was soft.

Sarah looked up at the millions of stars. These were nothing like the stars back home. For one, the kingdom didn't have the light pollution that was so prevalent back home. But in addition, the stars just seemed closer somehow, and brighter, and there were more of them. Jareth had begun teaching her about the different constellations and the stories that went with them. She wondered aloud if there were one about the owl.

"There is," Jareth answered.

"As you must know, Above, this bird has a reputation for being the wisest of birds and yet it has also developed a bad reputation that stems from the fact that it is a solitary bird that has a nocturnal existence. It has been suggested that it is for this reason that it has been associated with the hours of night time when the darker forces are said to walk the earth. It has even been said that to see one during the day is a sign of bad luck. The Barn Owl is now a threatened species due to many factors such as loss of habitat, road accidents and changes in agricultural practice. They mate for life so the loss of a mate is devastating." At that point he looked at her very meaningfully, took her hand, and squeezed it.

"As one very short traditional tale goes...

"The night they say was still when the voice was heard, calling through the branches of a juniper tree to those that sat in the circle about a fire, kindled with hopes of holding back the hungry hands of winter.

From under the sheltering arms of the tree arose an owl, feathers silver like the moon, soft as the first breath of morning wind, with eyes like obsidian that caught and shimmered in the flickering flames of the fire.

"Death is coming" said the Owl, with a voice that echoed through the air. "Death is coming...".

Those that heard arose to their feet, fear raised, horror was in their footing as they ran away. They ran to the high lands and the low lands, they ran to the burnt lands and to the altars of the stone church. For a day they shook hands, forgave grudges, held each other

tight, lit candles against their own shadows and sung loud of hopes and the glory of life.

That night death did not visit but again the Owl came and again the Owl spoke... "Death is coming. Death is coming..."

Like before the people found the winter chill kiss their bones and fear dance in their mind and once again they held each other tight through the night, speaking words of hope, of kindness, of love...

Again death did not visit...

On the third night the ruffle of feathers against the night air was heard and like before the Owl arose and spoke to the people as they sat about the freshly kindled fire.

"Death is coming, death is coming..."

This time though the people let the words fall on empty ears, some shouted "away with you Owl, we will have no more of you!" Others still threw stones and filled the air with cries of anger. With that the Owl took to the wind and spoke no more to the people by the fire.

In the days that followed most talked of the Owl as a liar and a fool but as the days turned to years and years to decades those who had the hearts to listen, understood the message of the Owl.

Death _is_ coming... be it in the coming dawn or in the far off horizon...however kindness, hope and love are already here.

So, one must ask oneself... do you need an Owl in your life? Would you listen or throw stones?"

"There are two barn owl constellations in the sky, circling one another as they spend their lives together." He stopped, and she did too. Taking her other hand in his, he pointed their fingers almost straight up to the sky to an extremely bright star.

"That," he indicated, "is Geal – the brightest star in our sky. It is always found pretty much straight up. Now if you follow to this next star, you'll see the edge of its head." A magical blue line appeared between the two stars.

Jareth had done this with Sarah before. It was one of the ways that he had helped to point out his world's constellations to her. By the time he was finished, he had described with his hands a flying barn owl at the top of the sky, circling round its mate.

"It's called _Tyto Alba_,"he said softly, almost reverently.

Sarah stared up into the night sky, mesmerized by the sight of two beautiful owls circling one another, forever. Between the story that he had told her, what she had learned about owls mating for life, the gorgeous image above her head, and her never ending love for Jareth, she was overwhelmed.

She squeezed his hand, wordlessly.

He was smiling as he admired her profile looking up to the sky.

_Sarah_.

His beautiful wife, his Queen, his lover, the mother of his child, and the one time teenager who had been the only one wise and brave enough to ever beat his labyrinth.

_Sarah_.

His strikingly intelligent and talented partner, the woman who could exhaust him with her expectations, who could successfully challenge his every argument, who rarely let him get away with anything unless she thought it was funny.

_Sarah_.

By the gods, he loved this woman. Slowly, he reached over, cupping her cheek with one hand. Blue eyes met green ones, made magical by the sparkling stars above.

"You complete me," he said quietly.

When her eyes filled, he needed to be honest with her.

"I can't take credit for that," he said. "I took it from a film I'd seen when I was doing some future time traveling. But truthfully, it fits. I don't know what I would do without you."

Sarah positively flowed into his arms. Not daring, in the middle of the road, not daring to let himself go — not even daring let himself realize that this (sweet wetness and trembling fire) was the beginning of an ineffable evening which he had willed into being — he touched her hot, opening lips with the utmost piety, tiny sips, nothing salacious; but she, with an impatient wriggle, pressed her mouth to his so hard that he felt her devouring his mouth and shared in the sweet taste of her, the soft peach flesh of her mouth, her tongue longingly exploring his.

She pulled away for a breath, and looked straight into his eyes. "That's my answer," she said. "I have no words for this - for you – for us. Dance with me, my love."

Taking his hand, she led him home, softly singing one of their favorite tunes as he joined in:

"_From the dark end of the street_

_To the bright side of the road_

_We'll be lovers once again_

_On the bright side of the road_

_Little darlin', come with me_

_Won't you help me share my load_

_From the dark end of the street_

_To the bright side of the road_

_Into this life we're born_

_Baby sometimes, sometimes we don't know why_

_And time seems to go by so fast_

_In the twinkling of an eye_

_Let's enjoy it while we can (let's enjoy it while we can)_

_Won't you help me share my load (help me share my load)_

_From the dark end of the street_

_To the bright side of the road…"_

In the he middle of the road, the two lovers twirled toward home and bed.

~~~Ó~~~

**Geal – GELL = bright **

**Tytus Alba – (Latin) White Owl**

**Barn Owl ref: **

**BirdWatch Ireland **

**Tale****of****the****Barn****Owl**** \- Tale of the Owl - Ulchabhán l'esko**

**The****Mabigonian**

_**Bright Side of the Road**_** – Van Morrison **

**This is a fantastic song - Van Morrison wrote it in 1979. I suggest you check it out – it's impossible to be in a bad mood when you hear this classic. **

**In Celtic mythology the**** owl is a sacred animal associated with the ****gods and ****goddesses of the**** Otherworld /****Underworld and is a guide between that realm and ours. **

**I did borrow from Nabokov's ****Lolita**** for some of the kiss details.**


	6. Learning To Fly

If you get a chance, take it. If it changes your life, let it. Nobody said that it'd be easy, they just promised it would be worth it. - Sarah O'Rourke

Sarah stood outside, in a clearing not far from the Royal Gardens. She was wearing her new Owl costume/dress so to speak. She had a seamstress who could create wearable art within days or sometimes hours.

It was a one shouldered, long gown, with a V cut from the bottom up to

her knees in front. This was the seamstress's suggestion, as not only would it allow her to walk more quickly, but would look stunningly intimidating as she approached. The one shoulder with a strap sported a spray of white owl feathers, longer than they would be in real life, that accented her face and hung partway down her back. She had seen Jareth's owl outfit years ago, during her first Labyrinth run. She figured she may as well have one too.

Eimile nodded in approval as she approached. "That," she said, "is outstanding. Impressive as hell. Jareth will love it too, but you do know that you don't need it in order to transform, right?"

"Right," Sarah said. "So where should we begin?"

"To start, you're going to be setting your intention," said Eimile.

"Relax your mind and body.

Close your eyes and take two long deep breaths, breathing slowly in through your nose and holding the breath as long as is comfortable for you. Breathe out slowly through your mouth.

Connect with your animal through images. If you can see the owl in movement – follow the it to see where it takes you and what messages it wishes you to learn. If you are having trouble following it, first visualize the owl, then see it moving away. Be open to where it goes; it might be through an ordinary Earth/Otherworld scene, or even though time and space."

"Once you have connected with the owl, mentally tell it that you wish it to take you on a spirit journey so you can learn more about your soul journey at this time."

"Keep your mind open and willing to go on the journey. I can't tell you specifically what will happen, as everyone is very different, but be prepared to go someplace that your owl wishes to show you. Pay close attention to everything that happens."

Sarah closed her eyes and dutifully tried to remember everything that Eimile had said. Slowly breathing, she envisioned the owl flying through the countryside. She could hear the wind passing her by. Time seemed to be moving quickly, as she could see the sun going down, and see the sunset bloom more rapidly than usual.

She noticed at dusk that she could hear, it seemed, everything. Crickets, wind through her feathers, small creatures on the ground below.

As evening set in, she was startled to notice how well she could see. Even in a world of shadows, she could see the outlines of the trees, the village below, and the castle. But it was her hearing that was most incredible. She felt as though she could hear every conversation, every animal sound, almost every blade of grass growing. And these were allowing her to make her journey all across the kingdom.

Feeling perhaps overly confident, she swept past the window of the library, hoping to catch a glimpse of Jareth. Then the throne room. Then the Royal Chambers, where he was reading in bed. When he saw the flash of white pass his window, he looked startled and set down his book.

Finally, she swooped down underneath the elm tree where Eimile was standing.

She landed clumsily on the grass at first, then dug her claws into the soil to right herself. She slowly opened her eyes, becoming human again, and suddenly felt dizzy and off-balance. She stumbled to the left, and Eimile caught her.

Eimile's broad smile was contagious. "How long have I been gone?" Asked Sarah.

"About two hours. I've never seen anything like it! I figured that we'd spend this first session with you just meditating, but before I knew it you had actually transformed and flown off! Where were you? What did you see?"

Sarah felt a rush of adrenaline throughout her entire body. She was operating on her own high, and couldn't wait to do this again. She sat down, and told Eimile all that she had seen and heard. They were excitedly talking when Jareth strode up.

"You made your transformation already," he stated. It was not a question. He looked so proudly at Sarah and swept her up in his arms. "I could feel you. I even had an image of you flying past me. This is incredible. You're incredible!" He was beaming.

"And," he took her by the hands and spun her around. "May I say that your owl ensemble is unbelievably flattering!"

"I don't want to push things, but could you do it again, with me here, this time? We could take a quick flight around the perimeter of the field together."

Still riding her high, Sarah nodded. "I have dreamt of flying with you, my love," she smiled.

Almost instantly, she transformed. She was a beautiful little white barn owl, smaller than Jareth's. She fluttered up to his arm, landed there, and chirped.

He looked down at his arm with a sense of amazement. "You are so beautiful," he grinned. She took off, going over his head, racing through the sky.

Within seconds, she could sense him flying behind her, catching up quickly. They flew together in an arc around the clearing. Her heart was soaring.

Suddenly something slammed into her from her right, taking her breath away. She could feel her wings slowing down, dropping. Suddenly she felt something large and heavy above her, tearing into the back of her neck. As she was spiraling down with the large creature on her back, it seemed inevitable that she would slam into the ground. Suddenly she could hear a type of screaming, again from above her. Jareth was savagely defending her against whatever creature had attacked her.

For a few brief seconds, the world turned upside down until the assaulting creature was torn off her back. Jareth flew next to her again, this time with one wing under hers, slowing her rapid descent to the ground.

They landed across the clearing in relatively soft grass. Sarah was stunned, and bleeding from tears in her shoulders and in the back of her neck.

"What was that?" She looked fearfully up at the sky around them, seeing nothing.

Jareth, using his four fingers to heal the gash on her neck, said grimly, "Golden eagle. They can take down foxes and even deer. They're also extremely rare."

What he did not say was that he was relatively certain that this was no regular Golden Eagle. That it had an almost Fae intelligence. That it was most likely a transformative being. What worried him in particular, was that he knew of every creature in the kingdom capable of transformation, and this was not one. He needed to look into this, but he wasn't going to worry Sarah about it yet.

"I can almost promise you that that will never happen again, love. It has never happened to me nor anyone else that I know. We were having a lovely flight before this happened. Let's try to focus on that so that this one event doesn't shake your confidence."

Sarah, still stunned, silently nodded. Jareth rose and held out his hand to help her stand.

They walked, hand in hand, back to Eimile. She was almost hysterical. "What the hell happened? Where did that eagle come from? Oh my gods, Sarah, you're bleeding!"

Jareth's mouth was a grim flat line. "Eimile, your healing skills are even better than mine. Take her upstairs, heal those shoulder gashes, and get her some tea. I'm going to scan the area to find out where in hell that thing is."


	7. If You Could See Me

There is a brief period of twilight of which I am especially fond, little more than a moment, when I see what seems to be color without light, followed by another brief period of light without color. The earlier period, like a dawn of night, calls up such sights as at all other times are hidden, wistful half-formless presences neither of day nor night, that draw up with them similar presences in the mind.

Sarah O'Rourke

Several weeks after Sarah's first traumatic flying experience, she was becoming more at ease with the idea, and had even taken some brief flights around the gardens, with Jareth standing on the ground, keeping a careful eye on her.

Because she was becoming more pregnant, they had decided that it would be wise to curtail any more flying for now. She could transform all she wanted; just no more flying until after the baby was born.

Early one evening, she and Jareth were relaxing on the bed. She had been beginning to get some pregnancy headaches, and Ixonia had given her peppermint oil to rub on her temples and on the back of her neck to help with this. She was being very careful what she ate, which meant forgoing her beloved sushi, but it was worth it. She did not take any medications deemed unnecessary. She didn't even get manicures. She and Jareth were discussing details in preparation for the birth. He was lying crosswise on the bed so that his head was near the baby.

"So no anesthetic?" Jareth asked. Are you sure?"

"Just a local so that when they cut the episiotomy it's not too painful. Women have been having babies for eons without spinal blocks or anesthetic."

"Are you certain? Because I've heard that this experience will be the most painful one of your life."

"Thank you for reminding me of that, my love," Sarah smiled. "I will have you there, Ixonia will be there as midwife and our pediatric surgeon, in case we need her. We've been practicing our breathing exercises. I know that many women do have anesthetic, and there's nothing wrong with that, it's just that, for me, I'd prefer to go this way."

She did not know that Jareth and the surgeon had made secret plans for her to bring anesthetics just in case. They would certainly need them if they needed to do a C-section.

"We're in the homestretch," said Jareth. "About how big is she now?"

Sarah indicated with both hands. "About the size of an eggplant."

This comparison struck Jareth as hilarious. He laughed out loud. "And any movement? Has that changed?"

"Other than the super swimming exercises you're getting her to do with your crystals?"

He nodded. She reached her hand into his thick, silky hair, and begin massaging his scalp. He sighed and snuggled in closer to her.

"She gets the hiccups now and again," said Sarah. "They're adorable, really, unless I'm trying to sleep."

He reached his hand up over his head and laid it gently on her growing belly. "No, nothing right now. Maybe she's sleeping. Think I should try reading to her anyway?"

Sarah nodded, and Jareth reached for the book at his side. He loved _Good_ _Night_ _Moon_, but had decided to expand his storytelling.

"So, let's try something new. Let's find out what's happening at Pooh Corner." He settled in even closer to Sarah, and began:

"Chapter 1 ...in which we are introduced to Winnie-the-Pooh and some bees, and the stories begin."

"HERE is Edward Bear, coming downstairs now, bump, bump, bump, on the back of his head, behind Christopher Robin. It is, as far as he knows, the only way of coming downstairs, but sometimes he feels that there really is another way, if only he could stop bumping for a moment and think of it. And then he feels that perhaps there isn't. Anyhow, here he is at the bottom, and ready to be introduced to you. Winnie-the-Pooh."

Sarah leaned back against the pillows and closed her eyes. She had always loved these books, and hearing Jareth's melodic timbre made those memories even sweeter. She knew he was going to be a wonderful father. The baby moved slightly, as if she were sitting up and paying attention. Sarah smiled.

She must have fallen asleep, without realizing, because suddenly she heard Jareth reading the end of the second chapter.

She stretched out her right arm, the one that wasn't stroking Jareth's hair. Resting her elbow on the pillows, she moved her hand around in figure eights, dreamily. Her eyes were half closed, so she didn't think much about it when suddenly she couldn't see her hand.

She wondered at that briefly, then woke a little more and focused her eyes on where her hand should be.

It wasn't there. She didn't feel any different, even scratched her thumb with her index finger nail, but there was no doubt about it. Her hand was gone.

Looking at it more closely, she could still see her wrist and her forearm, although they were quickly disappearing as well.

She had gone from being mildly curious to the beginnings of a state of panic.

"Jareth! Look at this!"

Placing his thumb in the book to hold the page, he glanced up at Sarah. "Look at what?"

"My hand! My wrist - forearm - I can't see them!"

He sat up quickly when he saw that this was true. Kneeling on the bed next to her, he cupped her head in one hand.

"How do you feel? Can you still feel them?" His voice went from soothing to one of alarm.

In front of his eyes, her shoulder began to disappear. Then the right side of her neck, moving up her face. When he glanced down to see if this were affecting the baby, he was horrified to see the right part of her body was gone.

"Love! Are you still there?"

Her voice came clearly from where it had been against the pillow. "Yes, I'm here. I don't feel any different. I just can't – see myself!"

At this point, her body was completely invisible. He reached his hand out to her belly, where the baby was, and could feel it, perfectly.

"What were you doing when this began to happen?" He asked. He was beginning to have an idea.

"Just sort of – daydreaming, I guess."

"Would you say you might have been under a state of self hypnosis?" He asked.

"Maybe." In answering his questions, she was becoming more calm. "I was looking at my hand and just sort of twirling it around when _this_ happened."

"Can you stand?" He asked. He felt the bed clothes move and saw them shift as well. When he next heard her voice she was at the foot of the bed.

"I am here."

"And you can move around as usual?"

"Yes. I can still pick things up, too." And suddenly the water pitcher seemed to rise in the air of its own accord. He heard her giggle.

Jareth bit his lower lip, thinking. Well, the good thing here was that she seemed physically fine. Just invisible. Could this be another one of her growing magical powers? She was proving herself to be incredibly powerful since she became Immortal.

He was looking at the water pitcher as she set it down, continuing to look at that area is if she were still there. Suddenly, something tickled his ear, and without thinking, he brushed it away.

And felt her hand.

Suddenly, he felt himself being shoved back on the bed and could feel her sitting astride him. She was giggling madly.

"Oh, this is going to be fun. I can sneak up on you all the time!" And she kissed him on the mouth.

Pushing aside his own sexy thoughts of all of the possibilities, he spoke the obvious.

"And can you make yourself reappear now? You can't spend your life like this."

He heard her take a deep sigh. "I'm pretty sure I can. Not so sure I want to, right now."

"Well you should."

"Why? This is harmless fun. And you're not my father," she tossed in.

"No, but I am your King. And your King commands that you reappear!" He was trying very hard not to smile.

"Yeah yeah. My King makes lots of commandments. I think he needs to lighten up," said the voice.

"Sarah – " he growled.

He felt her nip his left ear, and then popped back into existence, still on top of him.

"That was incredible. Do you think you could do that again?"

"Pretty sure," she smiled. "Part of it was very much like doing an owl transformation. I almost have to self hypnotize and focus."

Jareth nodded. "That's exactly how it is for me when I transform. But I've never been able to come close to mastering invisibility. This talent could prove very helpful."

"Not to mention fun! Like I said, I think you need to watch your back now." There was laughter in her voice.

"You. Are a very. Naughty girl. Do you know what The Goblin King does to naughty girls?"

Suddenly he flipped her so that she was on her back and he was astride her, holding her wrists over her head to the bed with one hand.

She gave him a wicked smile. "I hope I'm about to find out. Go ahead. Do your worst!"


	8. Photograph

"A photographer is aware of the tiny moments in a person's life that reveal greater truths." – Jareth Ó Rourke

Several weeks later, Sarah was playing her violin in the music room. It was a room with high, narrow windows that rose up about two stories. It had the feel of a conservatory about it, as Sarah had filled it with lots of sun loving plants. There was a grand piano in there, Jareth's guitars, and her violin.

Sarah had been singing and playing music for the baby almost from the time that she knew she was pregnant. Right now she was playing Brahms - Violin Sonata No. 3.

Written late in the composer's career, this final violin sonata contains all the melancholic splendour one would imagine, but also some of Brahms' sweetest melodies. Played well, it sweeps the violinist along just as much as the audience.

Sarah loved Brahms, and was caught up in this, her favorite piece of his. She was swaying back-and-forth with the music.

Jareth heard the beautiful notes and made his way to the music room. Once there, he was stopped short of entering by what he saw.

His beautiful, dark-haired wife was playing in front of the windows. Early morning sunshine poured through. Her nightdress was long, with long puffy sleeves. Her hair was down. The sun shone through the creamy fabric, and he saw her body in silhouette. It was an absolutely poetic vignette, and she had no idea that she had created it.

She had her eyes closed while she was playing, and didn't see him. He quickly walked to the Royal Chambers and brought out one of his cameras. The technology Above never ceased to amaze him, and photography had been one of his many interests, almost from the time the first camera was created.

As he headed down the hallway back toward the room, he could still hear her playing. Good. He was hoping to catch some candid shots, and didn't want her to feel self-conscious or shy.

He was able to get in almost 8 shots before she realized that he was there and stopped playing. Her thick, dark brows knitted. "What are you doing?" She asked quietly.

His tone was apologetic. "I didn't mean to startle you, love. I was walking past the doorway when I looked in to see you playing. It was a perfect image – the sunshine shining through your gown, the beautiful silhouette underneath, your gorgeous long hair, and you playing the violin… it was magical. Look."

He held out the camera to her where she could scroll through those first few shots. They _were_ beautiful. Jareth was a fine photographer. This would be a lovely gift for the baby sometime when she was older.

"No, you didn't bother me. The photos are gorgeous. That's a little amazing, actually, if you consider that I haven't even brushed my hair this morning…"

Jareth ran his hand gently through her hair to touch the left side of her face, and tucked it behind one ear.

His eyes looked so deeply into hers. "No. You look perfect. Could I get some more shots?"

"I — guess so. "What should I do?"

"Just keep playing right where you are," he said. He moved one of the taller palms nearby so that it was bordering the image on one side. "Go ahead, keep playing. Don't mind me."

Morning turned into afternoon as they continued the impromptu photo shoot. This time, Jareth held Sarah with her arms wrapped around her belly, below it, and musing into the standing mirror. These photos were also taken from the side, where one could see the baby bump quite clearly now.

He stepped behind her, and she looked up at him. "Do you mind? I have an idea. I want you to continue gazing into the mirror, keeping your chin down just a little more." His hands came to rest on the sides of her belly, almost like he were holding the baby. Tiny motes of dust floated through the sunlight almost like stars. They took several pictures that way. Jareth never had to worry about much expensive equipment, he did quite well with relatively cheap cameras and his own magic and artistry.

Sarah felt cool air and a soft brush against her cheek. He had taken his wings out. They were down, but reached up somewhere near his hands, looking as if they were protecting the baby. Now this was a picture that would blow peoples' minds back home, she thought. They went to the Royal Chambers where Sarah held her nightgown up over her baby bump. Jareth knelt in front of her, cradling her belly and kissing it. These were also beautiful shots, and he added some filters to soften the effect.

They were both laughing and having so much fun with this. Sarah had wanted a baby book that began with pictures of her daughter before she was even born, and most of these photos would be in that book. Some of them were just beautiful, private shots for her and Jareth.

One of those private shots was in Flidais' Woods adjacent to the gardens. Jareth had made sure that it would remain private. Sarah removed the top of her nightgown but let it hang just on her hips below her belly. Jareth stood behind her, holding her breasts in his hands. An erotic picture, to be sure, but nothing was technically shown.

She arched her back, leaning her head back on his shoulder. More shots.

He bent down to kiss her neck, her eyes were closed, her face was a masterpiece of ecstatic beauty. More shots.

She put the gown back on, and the two of them stood face-to-face in the lane of the woods. They tipped their foreheads together and held hands. The sun behind them created a radiant halo around the image.

He picked her up as if she weighed nothing, holding her like a bride. Her head rested on his shoulder, eyes closed. His eyes were looking directly into the camera.

"Well, love, what do you think about this so far? I think we've got some beautiful pictures to work with."

She opened her eyes and smiled at him. "I don't suppose we could try some more things back in the Royal Chambers? Things that might involve me taking my gown off, and your hands on parts of my body…"

"You read my mind, Precious. I'm assuming these are going to be more private shots, correct?"

"Mmmm. No. What I'm thinking of will not involve cameras —"

He looked into her eyes, the trace of a smile around his lips. "May I carry you there, my love?"

She rested her head back on his shoulder, looking up at him with her large green eyes. "Please. Sire."

One spectacular eyebrow raised up. "Sire? I quite like that. You may call me Sire whenever you like, my Queen."

"You talk too much, Sire," she smiled. "Let's go!"

~~~Ó~~~

Several hours later, Jareth stepped out of the royal chambers. Sarah was still in bed, taking a nap.

He headed downstairs, to the throne room. On his way he passed the dining hall. Sitting there, finishing their lunch, were his sister Eimile, cousin Finn, and Finn's significant other, Ixonia. Ixonia was going through some modern medical training, as well as herbology. She would also be in attendance at the birth.

Finn raised his wine glass to Jareth. "And here's to the King. And his magnificent prowess. No wonder you two conceived so quickly! Your Queen must be exhausted!" He winked at Jareth.

"Quite the opposite," said Jareth, sliding into a chair. He rested his elbows on the table. "She is exhausting me!"

"I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that," said Finn. "The great Goblin King, worn out by a little slip of a human

woman? All of my expectations of you are ruined."

"Yes, well, you're not dealing with a part Fae, Immortal woman with hormones that could fuel a Formula One race car. Let me know when you get to that point and we can talk."

Finn chuckled, and Jareth slapped his palm across his forehead. "Lunch! We invited you to lunch today! I'm sorry. We both completely forgot."

Eimile raised her eyebrows to him and smiled. "We thought as much. You two are like bunnies lately. It's amazing you get anything done!"

Ixonia smiled at him and gently pushed a glass of wine toward him. Jareth took it gratefully, and she said, "We have plates saved for you both. The kitchen staff is keeping them warm."

Jareth nodded. "Thank you. And again, I apologize. Finn, do you have some time this evening? I'm going to be meeting with the Dwarven council tomorrow about this pending Formorian problem, and I would like you there."

Suddenly Sarah approached from around the corner. She was barefoot, wearing a lovely silk robe, and had romantically messy hair. "Love? You need to come back to bed…"

She stopped short when she saw the three guests at the table. "Oh. Was that today? I completely forgot. Sorry." she didn't sound sorry at all.

Draping herself around her husband's shoulders, she gently touched his lower lip with an index finger and purred. "Let's go back up. I have even more things we can try…" And taking his hands, she pulled him out of his chair and toward the doorway, completely ignoring her guests.

As Jareth was being dragged out of the room, he put one hand on the door frame to stop her. Looking back at the three sitting at the table, he silently mouthed, "Help Me!" And then vanished.

Eimile and Finn's unsympathetic laughter rang through the castle.

~~~Ó~~~

Hours later still, there was a soft knocking on the Royal Chambers door. By the sound of it, the door was being knocked on about 18 inches from the bottom. A soft little voice called out:

"Queen Sarah! Queen Sarah, it's me, Spam! I has some yummy nibbly things for you. You has been in bed all day and Spam thought you might be hungry. The baby must be hungry. Can I come in?"

Jareth was touched by this little goblin's concern for his wife and child. He stood up to answer the door and just as his hand was on the latch he heard a great crashing and clanging as Spam had obviously toppled her tray of nibbly things all over the hallway.

He turned around and looked at Sarah, a chagrined look on his face. She had to cover her mouth so that her laughter wouldn't hurt Spam's feelings.

Once Jareth had the door open, he saw poor little Spam on her knees, frantically picking up bits of food, cutlery, and shattered dinnerware. There was another, smaller goblin, who was scavenging for food on the floor, even though Spam kept trying to swat him away. She hung her head when she saw Jareth.

"Spam?" He said quietly. "What have you got there?"

She didn't know what to say. Unlike any of the other goblins, Spam had taken it upon herself to watch out for her master and mistress' well-being. Before Sarah, her Kingy was quite cranky and very difficult to help. But now because of Queen Sarah, he was a very different Kingy. Spam still did not know what to say, though.

Looking down at her destroyed efforts to provide nutrition to her Queen, Spam mumbled something incoherently.

Jareth smiled kindly. He knew she was just trying to help. He shocked Spam by kneeling on the floor with her, and picking up the broken ceramics and silverware.

"Since he seems so willing, let's let Mumble clean up the food scraps from the floor, shall we? Her ladyship has a plate of food waiting for her in the kitchen. We can get that."

Spam exhaled in relief and beamed at Jareth. "And Kingy needs something to eat, too," she said. She hoped she wasn't pushing things too far.

"Don't worry about me. I have one as well, but I'll be eating in my office. Do you feel you can carry Queen Sarah's dinner to her?"

She nodded vigorously and scampered away down the hall. Jareth was extremely appreciative of her efforts, especially now. He took the main staircase down to the foyer, then his office. Finn was already waiting there for him.

Jareth's face was grim as he shut the door. Finn, looking at him, was uncharacteristically serious. He was concerned, actually.

"So the Formorians are truly beginning to appear a threat?" Almost incredulously.

"Yes," replied Jareth. "So much so that we need everyone to begin taking this seriously or our world as we know it might be completely destroyed.

~~~Ó~~~

**The Fomorians (Old Irish: Fomoire, Modern Irish: Fomhóraigh) are a supernatural race in Irish mythology. They are often portrayed as hostile and monstrous beings who come from the sea or underground. They are enemies of Ireland's first settlers and opponents of the Tuatha Dé Danann, the other supernatural race in Irish mythology and Jareth's people. However, their relationship with the Tuath Dé is complex and some of their members intermarry and have children. **

**The Fomorians seem to have been gods who represent the harmful or destructive powers of nature; deformed personifications of chaos, darkness, death, blight and drought. The Tuath Dé, in contrast, seem to represent the gods of growth and civilization.**

**The second Battle of Mag Tuired was fought between the Fomorians under Balor of the Evil Eye and the Tuatha Dé under Lugh – Jareth's grandfather. When the two forces met on the field of battle, it was said that to attack the fierce Fomorian flank was like striking a head against a cliff, placing a hand into a serpent's nest, or facing up to fire. Balor killed King Nuada of the Tuatha dé with his terrible, poisonous eye that killed all it looked upon. Lugh faced the evil Balor who happened to be his grandfather, driving a spear through the eye out the back of his head, wreaking havoc on the Fomorian army behind. After Balor's death the Fomorians were defeated and driven into the sea.**

**For eons, it was assumed that the evil, destructive and chaotic Formorians were no more. However, there are signs appearing all over The Underground, including Jareth's kingdom,****that they are returning.**


	9. Snow Globe World

"This time of year is full of memories for me. In winter at home, by the fire. Frost on the window, and snow. Snowballs and making snowmen. One winter, I made a really big snowman. That winter brought the heaviest snow I'd ever seen. The snow fell steadily all through the night. And when I woke up, the room was full of light and silence, and I knew then it was to be a magical day."

Jareth

It was coming on winter. A soft blanket of snow covered the kingdom, muffling sound everywhere and creating beautiful snowscapes. Right now soft, fat flakes were falling lazily past the window of the sitting room.

Sarah and Jareth were on the green velvet sofa in front of the fire. Sarah was lying down, her head in Jareth's lap. He was absentmindedly playing with her hair while talking to their unborn daughter.

"And the kind, wise, and patient Goblin King took pity on the willful girl, generously using his magic and his Labyrinth to teach her valuable life lessons before giving her back the babe she had so cruelly wished away – "

"What?" Sarah snorted. "Don't listen to your father, baby girl. Mommy was never that awful and your Daddy has an over-developed sense of his own prodigiousness."

"Daddy deserves to feel that way," Jareth said smugly. "He is a wonderful and powerful king, wise and judicious!"

"Tra la la! I'm Jareth, the vain and temperamental! Don't piss me off or I'll bog you in an instant!" Sarah mimicked Jareth's accent perfectly.

"You have a very mean Mommy. She thinks hurting Daddy's feelings is funny," Jareth pouted.

"Oh, no!" laughed Sarah. "I'm sorry, love!" She reached up with one hand and stroked his cheek.

He took her hand and kissed it. "Even now, I'm thinking up ways that you can make this up to me. Hmmm…."

"Make what up to you?" asked Finn. He had strolled into the library, looking for Jareth, and found both of them there. Sarah, her head still on Jareth's lap, turned her head to him and smiled. Finn sat down in a wing-backed chair across from them.

"Oh, just mimicking his Highness," she told him. "Listen to this one: 'Where in bloody hell did someone put my crop? If those damned goblins have been playing with it again, I'm going to create a goblin soup! Oh, wait. Here it is. Right on my throne where I left it.'" she snickered. Jareth covered his eyes with one hand, shaking his head.

"That was brilliant!" admired Finn. "And who says a Yank can't do an accent like that? I've got one too: "Finn, you drink like a bloody fish. You've got yourself absolutely pie-eyed. You'll never catch me sloshing about like that!"

"That was good! You sounded just like him!" She cackled.

Jareth, his eyes still covered, said, "You know, I had quite a nice outing planned for today, but if all you two want to do is sit there and make fun of me…"

Sarah's interest was piqued. She sat up and looked at Jareth. "What sort of outing?" She glanced at Finn, who looked curious as well.

"Oh, just a nice walk through town, looking at the shops, enjoying the snow, having mulled cider and I'll treat to a lovely lunch in front of the fire at one of the pubs. And some music. Nothing special really. I just thought, with Yule coming on…"

Sarah bounced up and down on the sofa like a small child. "Ooh! Count me in! I would love that!"

"That sounds absolutely splendid," added Finn. "I'm assuming we're asking Ixonia and Eimile as well?"

"Only if you're more kind to me," replied Jareth. He was going to milk this one.

"Well, how's this for kind?" Finn asked, producing a bottle of MACALLAN NO. 6 Highland Single Malt Scotch.

Sarah stared at the bottle, then at Jareth, then at Finn. "How the hell am I supposed to compete with a $6000 bottle of fine scotch in Lalique crystal?" She asked. "That's ridiculous! Finn, what sorts of things do you _buy_ Above?"

Jareth gave her one of his winsome Jareth smiles. "Well, that is a fitting tribute to your King. What have you, my wife?"

Sarah slitted her eyes at Finn, knelt on the sofa and whispered into Jareth's ear.

"Hmmm." mused Jareth. "And what else?"

She gave an exasperated sigh and whispered again in his ear.

"With chocolate sauce?"

She nodded.

"Done!" He exclaimed.

"That's not fair!" Finn sulked. "Just because I don't have the necessary girl parts…"

"Not to mention the fact that you are my _cousin_," Jareth reminded him. Sarah smiled, adorably smug.

"Plus he's _mine_," and she pulled his head to her breast. Jareth smirked at Finn.

"I've told you, Finn. Get yourself a wife. The right woman…"

Jareth knew that Finn had been actively courting Ixonia for a while now. They had yet to speak of wedding plans, however, and this was a sensitive spot with Finn. Jareth knew this.

"Bugger off. I'll go tell the others. Are we leaving straightaway?" And he turned toward the door.

"Let's say an hour," smiled Jareth. "I have a tribute to collect." He turned his smile to Sarah. She grinned back and purred at him.

Finn just silently shook his head and left.

~~~Ó~~~

Sarah had gotten out of the shower and was drying her hair. She was so grateful for the electricity that Jareth had been able to run through most of the castle. Eventually, they hoped to run it to the entire village. Sarah was leaning toward solar energy, Jareth wanted wind power. Neither of them wanted the coal smoke pollution that had to be dealt with Above.

Jareth stepped out of the shower, wrapping a towel around his waist. His skin was glistening, and Sarah was finding it difficult not to look at his chest. They had to get going if they were going to meet the others soon.

Not looking at him, she stepped into the bedroom and seated herself at her boudoir table. She began to apply a small amount of makeup. Jareth passed behind her, whistling. Again, she made an effort not to look at him. She thought about him all the time, those hormones were unbelievable, and they really had to get ready now.

She heard him dressing, then he headed back into the bathroom to do his hair and eye makeup. Standing, she slipped on the everyday petticoat she was becoming more used to, although this one had been created to accommodate her pregnancy. She was wondering what the proper attire would be for an afternoon like this.

As if he read her mind, (and he probably did, without permission,) he stuck just his head out and nodded to the back of her armoire door. She peeked around it and saw a gorgeous dress and cape, exactly like something out of Dickens.

It was of fine dark red taffeta, with a Victorian lace up bodice, Victorian skirt (of matching taffeta) a matching bustle skirt attachment with button fastening,a matching apron swag bustle attachment with button fastening in back, and a matching ruffle neck choker. A pair of black, pointed toe, button up boots stood to the side.

She stepped back and gasped. This was like stepping back in time to the Victorian era! It was so elegant, so lustrous, so feminine, and so over-the-top!

Jareth ducked his head out of the bathroom and looked at her. "Well?" One eyebrow rose.

Sarah's eyes were huge, and there was a blush to her cheeks.

" I thought you might like that. I had it made to go with your hair and eyes, and the season, of course." He ducked back into the bathroom.

"But — I mean, this is gorgeous, I don't mean to sound ungrateful, but it has hoops! And hundreds of buttons! And I don't even know how many petticoats! I don't know _how_ – "

"How to put this on?" Came Eimile's voice. "It is no small endeavor, trust me. But we've been doing this since I was a little girl, so I can help you dress."

Sarah turned around and saw her sister-in-law dressed similarly but in a deep forest green taffeta that was just stunning with her red hair.

While Eimile was helping her, Sarah kept trying to peek into the bathroom to see what Jareth was wearing. His sense of fashion was impeccable. It had to be something wonderful.

She did not get to see him until Eimile was done with her, but then he stepped out of the bathroom. Sarah's breath caught.

His clothing was similar to hers in color so that they would clearly appear as a pair. He was wearing a tightly fitted velvet black frock coat which hung to his calves. The frock coat was lined with dark red silk, the same color as Sarah's dress. Underneath was a matching double breasted waistcoat of silk, a ruffled white shirt with a dark red silk cravat and bow tied around his neck. He wore black straight stove pipe pants with black pointed boots. In his hand was a beautiful black silk top hat.

She just stared at him until she remembered to breathe. "Ohhh — "

He was smiling. "Precious, you are a jewel. Absolute perfection. I cannot wait to be seen with you on my arm."

Eimile had stepped back next to Sarah to look at her brother. She elbowed Sarah gently in the ribs. "He can clean up pretty well, can't he?"

"As can you, dear sister. You look beautiful. Remember that compliment because I won't give you many more." He winked at Sarah.

He draped a black taffeta cape over her shoulders, lined with black mink. As soon as Sarah felt the mink, she started to protest. Jareth knew she didn't wear fur. "It's not real, sweetheart. I am very good at creating fake fur, remember?" He whispered into her ear before kissing her cheek. He handed her a beautiful set of kid gloves, which she also reassured her were not real, and they made their way downstairs.

From the top steps they could see Finn and Ixonia waiting for them. Their clothing looked just as wonderful. Finn was also mostly in black, as was customary in those days, and Ixonia wore a lovely dress of cream colored velvet. All three women more capes, and both men sported silk top hats.

The group had decided to walk into town, as it was just outside the castle grounds. It was a lovely day, warm enough not to become too chilly but cold enough to allow the beautiful snow.

Finn had brought a flask, and everyone but Sarah was partaking. They were all laughing as they set out. Not even Jareth was aware of a set of malevolent black eyes watching them from above.

~~~Ó~~~

**I neglected to give credit to the book Jareth was reading to the baby last chapter. It was ****Winnie the****Pooh****, by A. A. Milne.**

**The quote that I used of Jareth's at the beginning of this chapter was roughly taken from the Raymond Briggs animated film, **_**The**__**Snowman**_**. Initially, the film had a brief narrative at the beginning, done by the author. Later, it was decided that a better opening would involve someone famous – hopefully David Bowie, who had always liked Briggs' work and who agreed.**

**The film has become a holiday classic, but unfortunately, David Bowie's part at the beginning didn't make it into the films sold in the States. It can be found online, however. I highly suggest that you look for it, it's only about a minute and a half long, and it is especially poignant to see and hear David at this time of year. **


	10. Green Growith The Holly

"You know as well as I do it's not about what you look like, or your status in life, or how successful you are. It's about having people in your life that you love and who love you... that's all that matters." - Sarah O'Rourke

It was a magical day. The snow continued to come down in perfect flakes, and they walked the cobbled streets, taking in the sight of the snow dusting the thatched or slate roofs, the brightly lit windows, and though it was only afternoon, the street lamps were on as the sky was a steel grey.

They passed humans, elves, dwarves, and goblins on the streets and in the shops, all thrilled to see them outside the castle and in the village. Sarah, in particular, was incredibly popular. Jareth had no doubt that the rise in support of his monarchy had much to do with her, and her warm and loving nature toward all citizens. She always went out of her way to make it clear that she saw them as equals. He certainly knew that she was changing him for the better. And he had never been happier. This was a King unfamiliar to those in the Goblin Kingdom, and while they were doubtful at first, they had come to honor and respect this new King fondly.

They seemed to be continually running into children, who had met Sarah through her work in improving the schools. One little girl shyly handed her a small holly bouquet, the branches wrapped in green ribbon. Although it was no longer easy for her, Sarah knelt down to the child's eye level to say thank you and offer a hug. Jareth felt a surge of pride for his gracious wife. Queen Sarah was most certainly a beloved and respected monarch.

They merrily entered different shops. The first was a quaint little book shop, of which Jareth was enamored. He happily went from aisle to aisle, collecting arms full of books. Luckily, the shop owner agreed to deliver them all to the castle. Sarah had a difficult time pulling him out of that shop.

There was a Sweet Shop next-door. Sarah was absolutely enchanted. The confectionary boasted chocolates of every variety, beautiful marzipan fruit that had been hand decorated, toffees, peppermints, Turkish Delight, liquor-filled chocolates, candyfloss, wine gums, and liquorice allsorts. Jareth pointed out some of these, as she had never seen them, and there others - far too many for her to remember. She ordered a good deal of these to be delivered to the castle, and promised herself that she would be serving most of them to guests, as her sweet tooth had grown during her pregnancy, and she did not want to overdo things. Finn purchased a good deal of chocolate and began eating some before he had even left the shop. Ixonia looked at him and just shook her head.

They visited toy shops, which had Sarah thinking of all of the different things she wanted to buy for her little girl once she was older. She couldn't wait to return. She found a teddy bear in one that looked so much like the Lancelot she had had as a child. She bought him right away. She spied Eimile talking to the shopkeeper about a wooden rocking horse. Knowing Eimile's affection for horses and riding, this made some sense. When she overheard her quietly asking the shopkeeper to have it wrapped and sent to the castle, Sarah smiled and figured that this must be a gift for her baby.

They entered a shop that sold nothing but music boxes. People were winding them up and myriads of tunes spun through the shop. Some of them Sarah recognized, others must have been exclusive to the Otherworld.

They wandered through shop after shop, each seeming more magical than the last. They were approached by a group of wassailers, who were more than happy to offer some to the King and Queen and their comrades. Sarah took hers to be polite, but then asked Jareth if he would like hers, as wassail contains alcohol. He smiled at her, touched her cup, and said, "try it." She skipped the sweet drink, and discovered that Jareth had been able to remove the alcohol. How wonderful!

The aroma of evergreens filled the air. People were decorating shops and light posts with the boughs. Sarah knew that Jareth's people saw Yule as the time of Midwinter, and evergreens represented new life after the cold silence of winter.

A little, wizened, elderly woman was selling birdseed in small bags from a cart in the street. Jareth bought some for everyone, and they walked to the park next to the river to feed the birds.

In spite of the warming wassail, they were beginning to become chilled, so Jareth led them to the pub he had in mind for lunch.

It was called the Drunken Duck, and had an entrance so small one could easily miss it. However, once they entered through the black lacquered door, they found a large room with stone walls and floors. Enormous wooden timbers held up the ceiling. A huge fireplace took up an entire wall, and in front of it was a large oaken table, set with pewter mugs, dinnerware and plates. The entire interior was lit only with candles, and the effect was not only romantic, but warm and inviting.

Sarah was enchanted. She looked to Jareth to ask him if he had planned this, when a serving girl met them.

"Your highnesses," she addressed them, and curtsied. "Your table is ready and waiting."

They followed her to the large table in front of the fireplace, and seated themselves, grateful for the warmth. Jareth ordered more wassail for everyone and the girl returned quickly with a large bowl and ladle. Finn proceeded to fill everyone's mug, and Jareth made sure to remove the alcohol from Sarah's.

Finn rose and offered a toast. "To Yule, and the love of friends and family!" Everyone clinked mugs.

Jareth rose, addressing Sarah."I have known many, liked not a few, loved only one, I drink to you!" Everyone cheered as Sarah blushed.

Ixonia toasted to the health of Sarah's baby, the future heir of the kingdom, and Eimile's was: "Oh, womens' faults are many, yet men have only two:

Every single thing they say, and everything they do." All the women laughed, and both Jareth and Finn groaned.

Finn hopped up, mug in hand, and said, "I have one more!" But everyone at the table was talking and laughing; no one heard him.

"Pardon! Cried Finn, a bit louder. "I have…" again, no one heard him.

This time, he nimbly jumped to the top of the table and yelled, "OY!"

This time, he not only had the attention of everyone at the table, but of the entire pub as well. He looked around, a bit embarrassed, but cleared his throat and continued:

"'Tis glad I am,

And glad I'll be,

Knowing you like,

The likes of me.

Ixonia, would you do me the honour of becoming my wife?"

This was unexpected, from everyone but Finn. Jareth watched Ixonia carefully. For his cousin, a notorious womanizer, to lay out a proposal was no small feat. Here he was, offering his heart out in front of many.

She sat there, silently, staring at Finn for a while. Then her eyes welled up with tears, her hands flew to her throat, and she began nodding her head, rapidly. "Yes! Yes I will!" The entire pub burst into cheers. Jareth approached Ixonia from behind, gently lifting her so that she too was standing on the table. She and Finn shared a long kiss.

Several hours later, after a wonderful meal, the group left the pub to head back to the castle. As they stepped outside, the beautiful snow was still falling, and it was thicker on the ground and on the rooftops. Sara looked up and down the street, with its festive evergreens and lights, and looked at Jareth and the others. Jareth and Finn with their long waistcoats and top hats. All of the women with lovely hooped skirts. She wondered that she hadn't noticed before.

"You know," she said to the group, "This entire day has been like something out of Dickens!"

Finn, Ixonia, and Eimile looked at her blankly.

"Who's Dickens?" Asked Finn.

"Charles Dickens," Sarah said. Not quite believing this. Who doesn't know of Dickens and a Christmas Carol?

Jareth said to Finn, "Didn't you pay attention at _all_ at Cambridge? Dickens was one of the finest writers of his era! A Tale of Two Cities, Oliver Twist, A Christmas Carol, David Copperfield, Great Expectations….?" He rattled them off, shocked that his cousin had managed to graduate from University and not know Dickens' works. He himself was a voracious reader, and even knew the story of a Christmas Carol when he was a child. He looked helplessly at Sarah.

"I know that most of you do not celebrate Christmas here, but Yule. Above, where I'm from, both holidays are celebrated, often by different people. Charles Dickens lived several hundred years ago and was a fine writer. One of my favorite books of his is a Christmas Carol, a story not so much about Christmas as about redemption. The story takes place in London, during a time when most villages looked like this," and she swept her arm to indicate down the street, "and most people dressed as we are."

Jareth put his arm around Sarah's shoulders. "Once again, my beautiful and perceptive wife has picked up on something wonderful that we can all share. I _own_ this book. It's not terribly long, and I think it would be great fun to read it to you all back at the castle, if you wish."

Sarah was thrilled, and the others, not wanting the day to end, were willing as well.

Once back at the castle, everyone had collected in Sarah's cozy sitting room, with a roaring fire. Sarah had made mulled cider, and there were blankets for people to put on their laps.

Sarah and Jareth decided it would be Jareth who read the story, because of his melodious speaking voice. Sarah was also becoming a bit tired.

Jareth had fetched his book, and was sitting in one of the wing back chairs.

"Did I mention that this is also a ghost story?"

Ixonia pretended to shudder, Finn protectively put an arm around her and said, "Ooooooh. Ghosties and things that go bump in the night…"

Jareth began. "Marley was dead, to begin with. There is no doubt whatever about that. The register of his burial was signed by the clergyman, the clerk, the undertaker, and the chief mourner…."

~~~Ó~~~

**Wassail - Wassail is a hot, mulled punch often associated with Yuletide, drunk from a 'wassailing bowl'. The earliest versions were warmed mead into which roasted crab apples were dropped and burst to create a drink called 'lambswool'. Later, the drink evolved to become a mulled cider made with sugar, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg, topped with slices of toast as sops and drunk from a large communal bowl.**

**WassailIng refers to a traditional ceremony that involves singing and drinking to the health of trees on Twelfth Night in the hopes that they might better thrive. The purpose of wassailing is to awaken the cider apple trees and to scare away evil spirits to ensure a good harvest of fruit in the Autumn.**

**Did you notice my little bird woman? She is actually from the movie Mary Poppins and sells crumbs to people, urging them to "feed the birds." It's a lovely song, and a lovely image, and I thought it would be fun to insert it here.**

**Thank you for following me this far! The next few chapters are going to become a bit more exciting and faster moving!**


	11. Absolute Beginners

"Giving birth may be all intense and magical and stuff, but the act itself: it's not exactly pleasant. But it's also a beginning... of something incredible. Something new. Something unpredictable. Something true. Something worth loving. Something worth missing. Something that will change your life... forever." – Sarah O'Rourke

After everyone had gone home, Sarah and Jareth held hands as they made their way to the Royal Chambers. As soon as her foot hit the third step, she gasped. She let go of Jareth's hand, grabbed onto the banister, and bent over slightly. It felt like a sharp cramp. Immediately he put his hands around her shoulders to stabilize her, and looked into her eyes.

"Are you okay? Was that a —"

She nodded. "It most definitely felt that way, anyway. It _could_ be Braxton Hicks contractions, though. Which indicate that nothing is really starting."

"Isn't this a little sooner than we had hoped for?" asked Jareth, worry in his voice.

"Yes," Sarah sighed. The cramp, or contraction, or whatever it was was over and she straightened up.

"See? I'm sure it was Braxton Hicks. I know I'm a first time mom, but it just didn't feel like —"

Jareth had created a crystal to speak with Ixonia. In his mind, she sounded concerned, although she was trying to keep the tone of her voice neutral. "I'd like to stop by and check. I'll see you both soon."

"Should we get the pediatric surgeon down here?" he asked.

"No, love, we're fine. Let's see what Ixonia says first."

Sarah and Jareth created what they called a birthing room, right next to their bedroom. It had all of the equipment necessary in case of an emergency, and that included a C-section, but it also had a fairly large, comfortable sort of lounge chair. It was longer than usual, because they had decided that Jareth, being her coach and spouse, would sit behind her. This way he could hold her knees up if needed, hold her hands, give her back rubs, anything she needed to feel comfortable and relaxed. It also allowed him the opportunity to take a more active part in the birthing process.

The room itself was painted in a soft shade of butter yellow, with white mouldings and silk walls. Wing backed chairs were placed around the room, upholstered in a yellow and cream stripe. This way, any visitors would have a comfortable place to sit. The curtains were a lovely creamy silk, hanging down from the very high windows and puddling down on the floor. The floor was carpeted with an oriental rug, and some of the photographs that Sarah and Jareth had taken lined the walls. It was a warm, comforting, yet efficient birthing area. Ixonia had made sure to have many stacks of sheets, towels, and a washing basin as well.

Ixonia let herself in. "Hello!" she called. "Are you two up there?"

Sarah leaned over the railing. "Yes, Ixonia, we're here. I'm beginning to think that we wasted your time. I've just had that one cramp and nothing else since."

"Well,"said Ixonia cheerfully, mounting the stairs, "I can at least take a look. That way you can go to bed and not have anything to think about."

Ixonia and Sarah met in the birthing room. Ixonia did a check of Sarah's cervix, to see if they were any signs of preterm labor. While they were doing this, another contraction hit. Sarah bit her lip, not wanting to appear dramatic.

Ixonia slid her wheeled stool back, and helped Sarah sit up. "Well, Mama, those were not Braxton Hicks contractions. Those were the beginning of the real deal."

"Already? This is early."

"It is," Ixonia agreed. "But not so early as to be dangerous. Your daughter will be born with everything she needs to be just fine outside of your womb."

She stepped out into the hall, and gave Jareth the news. She suggested they both change into the comfortable clothing they had decided on. Jareth would be wearing one of his long white poets' shirts with grey tights. Sarah was slipping into a simple white cotton nightgown with long sleeves.

Spam and Mumble were excitedly bringing ice and water into the room. They then went to straighten the sitting room, rebuild the fire, and bring out finger sandwiches for the guests. Because this was to be a Royal birth, both of Jareth's parents and Eimile would be there. Finn had agreed to retrieve Sarah's father and Karen from above. Eimile, knowing that Jareth wouldn't leave Sarah' side, transported Above and brought back Dr. Matthews, the pediatric surgeon.

Suddenly, Sarah was hit with a contraction far worse than the first two. She moaned, she couldn't help it.

Dr. Matthews looked at her seriously. "Are you sure you don't want any kind of anesthetic? I won't be able to do it later." Sarah was _not_ sure, but she _was_ stubborn, so she declined. She also declined the IV bag of fluids that her surgeon had suggested. She wanted the freedom to be able to move around without pulling the rolling IV stand around with her.

She had read, and spoken to Ixonia, about the usefulness of walking as much as possible. So she and Jareth began to do laps upstairs. When a contraction hit, she would bend over a little, clasp her abdomen, and wait it out. Then they would consider continue walking.

Jareth was wonderful. He asked if she wanted him to tell stories, or jokes, or sing, hum, or just shut up.

She laughed. "Funny stories, please."

His first one, unsurprisingly, was about Finn. When they were about nine or ten, they had decided to go riding. His father had recently purchased a stubborn mare, hoping that he could tame it or at least work with it.

This was the horse that Jareth gave to Finn, who had no idea what sort of temperament the animal had.

They walked the horses for a bit, intending to set out racing once they reached the open fields. On the way to the fields was an apple orchard. Now, those who have seen an apple tree knows how low the branches can hang. This horse decided that she wanted no part of him on her back, so she walked directly under a low branch, in spite of Finn's yelling and pulling on the reins. He had two choices, jump off, or take his chances lying down in the saddle backwards.

Finn chose the latter. And as the horse slipped underneath the apple tree branch, Finn leaned backwards as far as he could go. By the time they were both past the branch, Finn had a scrape on his face from his chin to his nose from the bark of the apple tree.

Jareth just sat on his horse, watching and laughing. Finn was livid. He hopped off the stubborn mare and ran to Jareth's where he tackled him and knocked him clean out of his saddle. The two fought and wrestled on the ground until Jareth's father intervened.

Sarah was bent over again, but this time, it was due to laughter. "Oh my gosh," she straightened up, wiping a tear from her eye. "What did your father do?"

"Made me muck out stalls all by myself for a month. He said it was a very ungentlemanly thing to do. It was still worth it! You should've seen Finn's face!" And he started laughing too.

They passed about an hour's time, walking, pausing, and laughing. This isn't so bad, thought Sarah. She couldn't believe all of the horror stories she had been told by other women.

She was beginning to get tired, and the contractions are becoming harder and closer together, so they decided to head back to the birthing room. Eimile was sitting there with a book on her lap. She grinned at Sarah when they came in.

"I will be your entertainment for tonight," she said. I understand this is one of your favorites? And she held up a book – "Pride and Prejudice".

Sarah smiled and shook her head yes. Then she and Eimile looked at each other and both swooned at the same time – "Mr. Darcy!"

Jareth rolled his eyes. He had never been a Jane Austen fan. He settled himself back in the lounge chair, waiting for Sarah to sit between his legs. Once she had, he began rubbing her lower back, and Eimile began reading:

"IT is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.

However little known the feelings or views of such a man may be on his first entering a neighbourhood, this truth is so well fixed in the minds of the surrounding families, that he is considered as the rightful property of some one or other of their daughters."

Jareth actually smiled at the irony in that first sentence. Maybe this book wouldn't be so bad after all.

~~~Ó~~~

**Quote from Jane Austin, Pride and Prejudice (if you haven't read this yet, you should. It is funny, romantic, and full of irony. Not to mention Mr. Darcy.)**


	12. Miracle

"Pain is always a surprise. I tried to avoid it once - I could even see it coming, but until it hits you have no idea what pain is." – Sarah O'Rourke

So much of the birthing process, thought Sarah, was waiting. She had been waiting from the time she first knew she was pregnant. Waiting for the baby to grow larger, waiting to feel her kick, and now, waiting to give birth and to finally meet her.

Eimile had been kind enough to offer to read to Sarah, in order to pass the time and help her withstand the pain. It had now been several hours since her first contraction, and the contractions were steadily becoming harder and closer together.

Dr. Matthews was keeping track of her blood pressure, and listening for the baby's heartbeat as well as taking notes. Ixonia was folding clean sheets, and laying cool cloths over Sarah's forehead when she needed them.

Jareth was wonderful. He helped her ride out the contractions by holding her hands, he gently gave her lower back rubs, and when she leaned back against him he held her head against his shoulder and kissed her forehead.

"You can do this," he said. "Promise that you'll love me, even when you hate me."

"Why would I ever hate you?" She felt she wasn't going to like this answer.

"This process that we — you, really, are going through is going to be rough. And without any anesthetic, it's going to be difficult. And from what I have read, it will be frightening. I've heard that some women hate their husbands because of this."

She sighed in relief. Resting her head against his shoulder. Right now she was resting from the last contraction, and could focus a little better. "Jareth – love, there is nothing that could ever make me hate you. I'm afraid you're stuck with me."

Then she gasped, because another contraction was rolling in. That's what they did. They rolled in like ocean waves, and the trick was to ride them out. She knew they'd get worse and worse, until it became time to actively push, and not just passively hang in there, like she had been doing.

Jareth whispered into her ear, reminding her to use the breathing techniques that Ixonia had taught her. Whenever she forgot to breathe, he would do this. Gently and thoughtfully. She couldn't believe how lucky she was to have a man like this.

Breathing correctly through the rolling contractions was very helpful. The pain was still there, and it was getting worse, but the breathing definitely helped. She was sweating through her light cotton gown. Ixonia asked her if she wanted a blanket, but Sarah said no. She didn't want that extra weight. Jareth gently opened his wings. By lightly covering her with them, he could comfort her, keep her warm, and allow still allow her movement.

Suddenly she was hit with a contraction that was less like a wave and more like a hurricane. She couldn't help it. She screamed.

Ixonia was right there, and once that contraction was over, she checked for effacement and dilation again. Effacement and dilatation allow a baby to be born through the birth canal. Effacement means that the cervix stretches and gets thinner. Dilatation means that the cervix opens.

As labor nears, the cervix may start to thin or stretch (efface) and open (dilate). This prepares the cervix for the baby to pass through the birth canal. How fast the cervix thins and opens varies for each woman. In some women, the cervix may start to efface and dilate slowly over a period of weeks. But a first-time mother often will not dilate until active labor starts.

As the baby's head drops down into the pelvis, it pushes against the cervix. This causes the cervix to relax and thin out, or efface. Effacement is described as a percentage. For example, if a cervix is not effaced at all, it is 0% effaced. If the cervix has completely thinned, it is 100% effaced. After the cervix begins to efface, it will also start to open. This is called cervical dilatation.

Cervical dilatation is described in centimeters from 0 to 10. At 0, the cervix is closed. At 10, it's completely dilated. The cervix must be completely dilated before the pushing stage can begin.

"Sarah, you're already 60% effaced and at 7 cm. You're getting there!" Ixonia smiled at her. "You're handling this like a trooper. And I think you've got the best coach in the world." Jareth and Sarah both smiled slightly.

Eimile just kept on reading, even when she knew they weren't listening. Hopefully she was offering _some_ sort of helpful distraction. She started reading louder, and put more character into her reading.

In between contractions, Sarah had started to sleep slightly with her head on Jareth's shoulder. Softly, Jareth had started to whisper his wedding vows into her ear. He changed them slightly for this occasion:

"Today's the day our family life begins. All my life I've been just me. Just an empty hearted shell. Meeting you, I become a man. Today I become a husband and father. Today I become accountable to someone other than myself. Today I become more accountable to you. To our daughter. To our future. To all the possibilities that our marriage has to offer. Together no matter what happens I'll be ready for anything for everything. To take on life. To take on love. To take on the possibility and responsibility. Today, Sarah O'Rourke, our family life begins and I for one can't wait."

She stirred, and looked up into his eyes for the longest time. He looked back at her, lovingly and steadily.

"I can't believe you remembered that," she breathed.

She wanted to respond before another contraction could hit and interrupt her.

"Jareth, I could promise to hold you, and to cherish you. I could promise to be there, in sickness and in health. I could say til death do us part. But I won't. Those vows are for optimistic couples, the ones full of hope. I do not stand here optimistic or full of hope. I _am_ sure. I _am_ certain. So this, I am sure. You are my partner. My person. My lover. My very best friend. My heart. My heart beats for you. And on this day, the day of our child's birth, I promise you this. I promise you to always lay my heart in the palm of your hands, I promise you... me."

Silently, his arms and wings tightened around her. In the next moment, she was hit with a devastatingly strong contraction and an urge to push, an urge to make this all over.

As if she could read her mind, Ixonia stroked one of her arms. "You're going to feel the need to push, remember? This is going to be incredibly difficult, but you'll have to wait until the right time. When that time _does_ come, you can push against me, by putting your feet on my shoulders, Jareth can hold your knees, or we can do both, okay?"

Sarah just nodded. She had no energy left to speak. Suddenly another contraction hit, and this one was so painful, and so hard, but her eyes rolled back in her head. She arched backwards, and her head clipped Jareth's chin. He disengaged one of his hands to rub his chin. He whispered, "Don't forget to breathe, love. It will help you handle this better."

The unrelenting pain was starting to get to her. "_Don't_ tell me how to breathe! I'll breathe when I wanna breathe!" she snapped.

He reminded himself not to personalize this. That this frequently happened, and that the woman never meant those things that she had said.

His Fae senses were able to feel the contractions as they began to roll in. This one is going to be especially rough.

When he let go his right hand from hers in order to rub his chin, he had neglected to hold her hand again. This time, when the contraction hit, she arched back again and screamed. Frantically, her hand was searching for his. They couldn't find one another, and her fingers had become entangled with some of the feathers of his wing.

The tearing sound of feathers being ripped from his body could be heard from across the room. So could Jareth's wail of pain. "Noooo! Not the wiiiiiing!"

At just that moment, Finn had popped his head into the room to see how things were going. He grimaced at the sound of Jareth's torn feathers and cry of pain. He took a deep breath, and asked quietly, "How is everyone?"

Sarah turned her face away from him, silently. Jareth snarled "WE are FAN-FREAKING-TASTIC!"

Finn gulped. "Well, as long as you're all all right – " and he ducked out of the door, running down the stairs to give news to the waiting families.

Sarah was shaking her hand, trying to free it of the beautiful long feathers she'd torn out of Jareth's wing. Finally, she held a fistful of them out to him.

He rolled his eyes and gritted his teeth. It wasn't as though he could just put these back. "Thanks," he said, shortly, taking them and dropping them on the floor. Eimile gave him an evil look. He felt another one of Sarah's contractions coming on.

This time he made sure that they were both holding each other's hands. He turned his head to the side for the inevitable arch of pain that he knew would be coming. Her cry just tore at his heart. It seemed so unfair that women had to go through this while men got off Scott free. Well, there was the matter of his chin and his feathers, but that had been an accident.

Once the pain had passed, Sarah looked plaintively at Ixonia and said, "Can I push yet?"

This time it was Dr. Matthews who did the exam. She wanted to feel useful. She had some very good news. "Sarah, you're finally at 100% and dilated at 10. Things are going to start moving very quickly now. With the next contraction, I want you to brace yourself and begin to push."

Ixonia nodded at her and Sarah braced her stockinged feet on her shoulders. Jareth let go her hands and grabbed her shoulders.

Sarah was hit with surges that wracked her body. She pushed, becoming frantic eventually, exhausted and fearful. She leaned back, burying her face in Jareth's neck. "I can't do this anymore. I can't."

Ixonia tried to cheer her on. "Sarah, you can do this! Just a few more!"

"That's what you've already said, Ixonia. I've lost track of how many times. I'm beginning to think you're lying."

"Sarah," Ixonia said, "you have another one coming on. Get ready to push."

"No."

"No? But – "

"No."

Jareth nuzzled her neck. "Love, that's not realistic. Let's get this over with."

"No."

She was nearing the end of her rope, he could tell. Gently, her turned her to face him, holding her face in his hands, he said, "You are the most gifted, most guarded, most stubborn, most challenging person I have ever met. And I love you. You can do this."

As the next one hit, she took a deep breath and pushed. Ixonia squealed. "Sarah! I can see the baby's head – just one more!"

She pushed on the next one, stopping when Ixonia told her to. It was the oddest feeling, having the baby leave her body. Even after everything she'd been through, she felt empty.

swooped in to take the baby, rubbing her with a towel to get blood circulating, cleaning off her face, and checking for any problems.

It was then that they heard it; a quiet and high pitched cry. Sarah looked at Jareth, tears in her eyes. "She's okay!"

Jareth had a huge lump in his throat. "You did it, love!"

Dr. Matthews handed the blanket wrapped little bundle to Sarah. "Congratulations, Mom and Dad! Do you know yet what you'll name her?"

Jareth and Sarah looked at each other and smiled. "Saoirse," they both said at the same time.

~~~Ó~~~

Once everyone had been cleaned up, Sarah moved to the bedroom with the baby. Jareth went downstairs to give everybody the news. They were all so joyful and excited, that Jareth decided to allow them a very _short_ visit with Sarah and the baby.

She already had lots of thick, dark hair. She even had dark, straight eyebrows, reminiscent of her mother. When she opened her eyes however, everyone was stunned. She had one blue eye with a regular pupil, and a brown one, with a dilated pupil. Her father's eyes.

As everyone made a large sort of excited event over the baby, it was interesting. She didn't cry, even when somebody new picked her up. She didn't fuss. She seemed wise, somehow, far beyond her years.

"For some reason, life just seems to make a lot more sense when you're looking at a baby," said Brielle, Jareth's mother. Eimile and Karen agreed with her.

Jareth asked everyone to leave after about 20 minutes. He knew that Sarah and the baby were probably exhausted, and he knew that he was. Plans were made for everyone to return at different times to visit, but for now, for tonight, they would be alone. He walked everyone out.

Sarah was feeding the baby when Jareth had returned. It was completely natural and easy, she told him, wonderingly. "I've heard stories of nursing babies being so difficult, but not this one," she said.

Saoirse fell asleep, and Sarah reverently placed her in the small bassinet next to the bed on her side. She snuggled up next to Jareth, who was lying in bed, smiling. "You have given me so much," he told Sarah. "You've given me love, purpose, understanding, and now a family. I never thought I would have any of those things." He leaned over and kissed her on the forehead. "You now and forever will be my Precious."

Surprisingly, the baby only woke up once that night. There Sarah fed her in bed while Jareth slept. Then, so as not to wake him, she took Saoirse into the next room to change her. She finished, then looked down at her beautiful daughter. She was wearing the cutest little sleeper with owls on it. Only appropriate.

She was aware of a presence to her right. Turning her head, she saw a young girl, maybe 13 or 14 years old. She had straight dark hair, dark straight eyebrows, and beautiful mismatched eyes that Sarah had seen before. Except for the eyes, it was like looking at herself at that age. She looked up at Sarah with a beautiful smile.

"Hi, Mom. I just wanted to see how you were doing."

Sarah's took a sharp breath. Of course. She shouldn't have been surprised. She had already met her daughter twice before, at different ages. Having a child who could traverse through time was going to take some getting used to.

"I'm okay, Saoirse. A little sore, but nothing unexpected."

The girl reached out and gently ran a finger down on the babies arm. "I love this sleeper," she said quietly.

Sarah just looked at her, taking in the sight of her daughter at 14 years old, and the baby in front of her, who was the same person.

"Saoirse, may I ask you something?"

Again that beautiful smile, slightly like her father's. "Of course. What is it?"

"How do you do"– Sarah waved her arm around – "this?"

Saoirse looked thoughtful. "I really don't know. Sometimes, it just happens, and there's nothing I can do about it. Sometimes I'm able to control it – by thinking about someone or sometime - a place I time that I'd like to go."

"I ought to go. You and Da don't like when I do this. You worry about me. But I wanted to be sure I had the chance to talk to you on my first birthday. I'll be back. Please tell Da that I love him. And I love you too."

Suddenly, Sarah felt the girl's arms tight around her waist, and the top of her head tucked under Sarah's chin. Sarah hugged her back just as tightly, kissing the top of her head. The girl – the older Saoirse - stepped back and disappeared.

~~~Ó~~~

Saoirse = SARE-sha old Irish name meaning freedom or independence

Da = Irish term for dad. Saoirse uses this for Jareth, and because her mother is American, calls her Mom.

The birthing scene, while long, is very accurate, as it has happened to me twice. I do need to say, that by the time my second son was born, however, I was all about getting a spinal injection for the pain. People have different views on this. All I'm going to say is that birth number two was far easier than birth number one.

We first met Saoirse in book Two of the series. If you haven't read that book yet, Sarah meets her as a three-year-old toddler, playing in the gardens of a French hotel in the 1920s. Because Jareth creates a way to bend time, he took Sarah on a honeymoon to Paris in the 20s, which was her dream honeymoon.

Now that Saoirse has been born, you will be seeing much more of her, and her interesting story of how the time traveling affects her and how it happens.


	13. I'm On Top Of The World

"We enter the world alone and we leave it alone. And everything that happens in between...we owe it to ourselves to find a little company. We need help. We need support. Otherwise, we are in it by ourselves. Strangers. Cut off from each other. And we forget just how connected we all are. So instead, we choose love. We choose life. And for a moment we feel just a little bit less alone." – Sarah O'Rourke

Sitting up in bed together, Sarah was feeding the baby. Jareth felt a warmth in his heart just looking at his little family. He could never have supposed, years ago, that he would ever be this fulfilled or this happy. Still, he was unable to enjoy it as much because of the concern regarding the Formorian problem.

Fomorians seem to have been gods who represented the harmful or destructive powers of nature; personifications of chaos, darkness, death, blight and drought. The Tuath Dé, in contrast, represented the gods of growth and Formorians were an evil supernatural race. Whereas the Tuatha dé, Jareth's people, were known as a just and fair race. The Fomorians were defeated in the Battle of Mag Tuired.

They were often portrayed as hostile and monstrous beings who come from under the sea or the earth. Later, they were portrayed as giants and sea raiders. As enemies of Ireland's first settlers and opponents of the Tuatha Dé Danann, the relationship with the Tuath Dé is complex as some of their members intermarried and had children.

The second Battle of Mag Tuired was fought between the Fomorians under Balor, who had a single eye in the middle of his forehead. This eye would cause death for any unfortunate that Balor looked at. The Tuatha Dé were led by Lugh, Jareth's grandfather, and Balor's grandson. Lugh faced _his_ evil grandfather, as he was opening his evil eye, and threw a spear that drove his eye out the back of his head, wreaking havoc on the Fomorian army behind. After Balor's death the Fomorians were defeated and driven into the sea.

This was thousands of years ago, when both the Formorians and the Tuatha Dé lived in Ireland. Now there had been sightings of possible Formorian incursions from different parts of the Otherworld. Jareth did not see how this could be, as it was believed that the Formorions were believed to be extinct. Still, there was no denying the accounts of sightings coming from believable sources.

While Sarah was pregnant, Jareth did not want to upset her by giving her this news. However, the baby had been born, and Jareth knew how strong Sarah was. It was time to let her know.

He slipped out of bed, and pulled two chairs closer to the fire. "Love," he said, "There is some news in the kingdom that I must tell you."

Sarah frowned, and gave Jareth Saoirse to hold so she could get out of bed. They both sat in front of the fire, and Jareth began.

"I know that both Eimile and I have told you some of the history of our people, and why we live in the Otherworld and no longer live in Ireland….."

~~~Ó~~~

Once Jareth told Sarah everything, he noticed that she was pale and that her knuckles were white around Saoirse's blanket. Still, there was also that fierce green fire in her eyes that he loved so much. He had no doubt that she would be a strong and courageous Queen. Because it was entirely likely that they would be going to war, Sarah was to be granted the title of Queen Regent forthwith. Taking a deep breath, and giving Jareth the bravest smile she could muster, she handed Saoirse back to him, to get ready for a shower.

Sitting in front of the fire, with a warm baby on his lap, Jareth was relaxed a bit now that Sarah knew of the possible coming battle. He leaned his head back against the upholstered chair and inadvertently fell asleep.

He woke to find something trying to take Saoirse away from him. In a split-second, he created a crystal of fire, and threw it at the offender. He jumped to his feet in the next instant, hearing a woman scream.

Eimile was in front of him, slapping out flames on her dress. If she had not been an Immortal, that ball of fire would have killed her. She glared at Jareth.

"WHAT the bloody hell is your problem?" She spat, furiously. "I could see that you were resting, and I just wanted to hold my niece for a few minutes."

Jareth tried to slow his breathing, as well as his heart rate. Those fight or flight responses that are always relevant to possible danger to oneself or one's loved ones can sometimes go awry. He was still glaring at his sister.

Sarah came tearing out of the bathroom, soaking wet, with a towel wrapped around her. She had no idea what was happening.

"Oh — Eimile. I didn't know that you were here yet. Are your parents with you?"

"They're downstairs. And Jumpy over here just about burned me to death."

Sarah looked down at the burn hole in the carpet around Eimile's feet, and her scorched dress. Then she looked at Jareth's face.

"She startled me," he said lowly. "I'm afraid my nerves are somewhat on edge." He handed the baby to Sarah and walked into the bathroom for a shower. Both women stared at one another, shocked and confused.

Once Sarah and Jareth were dressed and ready, they brought the baby down to Sarah's sitting room, where Spam had built a lovely fire. Spam was absolutely in love with the baby, and did everything she could to help out.

Cillian and Brielle were waiting there, their faces breaking into beaming smiles as soon as they saw their granddaughter.

"May I?" asked Brielle, her hands reaching for the baby. Sarah happily handed her over.

"I cannot get over how much she looks like the both of you," said Brielle. "Especially Jareth's eyes. When he was born, no one had ever seen eyes like that before. She is such a beautiful little princess!"

It finally hit Sarah that her daughter was a princess. It felt so strange. To her, Saoirse was her daughter, her own little baby, and Jareth's daughter. She never thought about how she might have to share her with the kingdom as a Royal.

Eimile saw the sudden concerned look on Sarah's face, and knew what she must be thinking. It was not easy being the parent of a Royal. Swiftly, she scooped some blue cheese quiche tarts onto a plate from the buffet and handed them to Sarah. "You must be starving! Can I get you coffee or tea?"

Sarah smiled weakly, and said, "Tea please. Irish breakfast."

She sat down on the sofa next to Jareth, who also seemed to understand her misgivings, and rubbed her shoulders with one hand as he put an arm around her.

Cillian had stepped up to Brielle, and was tickling the baby under her chin as Brielle held her. Then he said, "give me that leanbh beag."

Once she had handed Saoirse to her grandfather, Cillian looked into her eyes deeply and said:

"Dear Child,

Sometimes on your travels, you meet people that think they are in heaven because of their cleverness and ability to get away with things. Travel past them because they don't understand who they have become and never will. These type of people feel justified in revenge and will never learn mercy or forgiveness because they live by comparison. They are the people that don't care about anyone, other than who is making them feel confident. They don't understand that their deity is not rejoicing with them because of their actions, rather he is trying to free them from their insecurities, by softening their heart. They rather put out your light than find their own. They don't have the ability to see beyond the false sense of happiness they get from destroying others. You know what happiness is and it isn't this. Don't see their success as their deliverance. It is a mask of vindication which has no audience, other than their own kind. They have joined countless others that call themselves "survivors". They believe that they are entitled to win because life didn't go as planned for them. You are not like them. You were not meant to follow their belief system. You were bound for greatness. You were born to help them by leading. Rise up and be the light home. You were given the gift to see the truth. They will have an army of people that are like them and you are going to feel alone. However, your family stands beside you now. They are your strength and as countless as the stars.

Blessings,

Your Seanathair

When he had finished, he gently gave the baby back to Sarah. Both she and Jareth had tears in their eyes. "What was that?" she asked Jareth quietly.

"One of the Tuath blessings," whispered Jareth. "I believe that my grandfather said something similar to me when I was born."

Cillian, seeing how teary-eyed his son and daughter-in-law were, decided to lighten the mood. He rubbed his hands together, and said, "Look at this wonderful spread on the buffet! I don't know about anyone else, but I'm going to pin my ears back and dive in!"

~~~Ó~~~

**leanbh beag**** = little baby **

**Seanathair = Grandfather**

**Ref: Gods and Goddesses of Ireland, Morgan Daimler **

**In Search of Ancient Ireland, Carmel McCaffrey and Leo Eaton**

**I also want to thank everyone so much for the reviews! I read them all, and I take them all seriously. **

**Thank you,**

**Maire**


	14. A Common Case Of Disappearing

"Everyday we get to give the gift of life, it can be painful, it can be terrifying, but in the end it's worth it. Every time. We all have the opportunity to give. Maybe the gifts are not as dramatic as what happens in the birthing room, maybe the gift is to try and make a simple apology, maybe it's to understand another person's point of view, maybe it's to hold a secret for a friend. The joy supposedly is in the giving, so when the joy is gone, when the giving starts to feel more like a burden, that's when you stop. But if you're like most people I know, if you love someone, you give till it hurts, and then you give some more."

Sarah O'Rourke

Sarah, Jareth and Saoirse were posing for a painting. They were in front of the large arched window leading out to the garden, Sarah was sitting in a chair holding the baby, and Jareth standing behind them, his arm protectively on the back of the chair. They were dressed about as royally as a family could be. Jareth had on his official royal dress regalia, and a white and green baldric across one shoulder onto which were pinned more medals than anyone could possibly count. Sarah wore a black Shantung silk gown, with an identical baldric over one shoulder. (Green and white being the official colors of the kingdom.) The medals she wore were of Labyrinth Champion, Queen Consort, and now because of the probable upcoming war, that of Queen Regent. Saoirse was wearing a long white baby's gown, made from her mother's wedding dress.

Jareth was getting antsy. He was shuffling his feet, sighing, and generally being fidgety. After about his sixth overdone sigh, Sarah was ready to hit him.

This painting would be very important to the Royal family. Sarah, a smile plastered on her lips, tried to tell Jareth to settle down from between her teeth. He just snorted.

The painter stood before them, holding his palette and looking at them very carefully. He was concentrating so much, in fact, that he jumped when Eimile appeared around the corner. Jareth had jumped as well. Eimile looked at him and rolled her eyes.

"Beautiful work, Didymus," she said. "Just be sure to never alarm the makers of the tiny Tuath. One of them will burn you alive!"

The little fox looked confused, but got right back to work. Working in oils was his latest hobby, and he was, truthfully, quite good at it.

Eimile sat down next to Didymus, legs crossed, one elbow on her knees, and her chin in her hand, waiting. She kept trying to make faces at Jareth and Sarah, hoping to make them laugh, or even smile. Instead, Jareth scowled at her, and Sarah managed a small chuckle before she composed her face again.

After another 30 minutes or so, Didymus said, "Your Highnesses, that was just lovely. I feel that for now however, we should all call it a day. Shall we meet tomorrow at the same time?"

Sarah smiled at him warmly, and said, "Of course, Didymus. We'll be here. I truly cannot wait to see your painting!"

Jareth made a small groan of frustration. Sarah subtly stamped on his foot, and he gave her a look that told her how unfair all of this portrait sitting was. She glared at him, indicating Didymus with her head. She didn't want to hurt her friend's feelings.

After Didymus had packed up and left, Jareth headed directly to his office. He was meeting with his Privy Council regarding the Formorians.

Eimile had come in order to transport Sarah's family down from the Above to spend some time with the baby.

"So how come you're so early?" asked Sarah.

Eimile stood up and looked out the window, hiding behind the curtains as she did so.

"I'm avoiding someone," she said, flatly.

Sarah smiled. It had become evident to many that Tadgh, the Commander of the Cavalry, had developed something of a crush on Eimile. In spite of her rudeness, impatience, and ignoring him, he continued to try to court her.

"Poor Tadgh," Sarah smiled, sympathetically.

"Poor Tadgh? Poor me! I'm the one who's being stalked here!"

"You could do worse, you know," said Sarah. "I mean, I know you're all independent and everything, but why not give him a chance? He's intelligent, he's kind, he's funny, and he's gorgeous…."

"Exactly," replied Amelia. "He's definitely hot. But he doesn't just want to go for a quick one nighter. Said he respects me too much for that. Says he wants to properly court me first!" She gave a very unladylike snort that sounded just like Jareth's.

Sarah just shook her head, trying not to laugh. "Have you ever really had an intimate relationship, though? I don't mean sleeping with people. I mean an actual relationship."

Eimile shook her head. "Intimacy is a four letter syllable for- here's my heart and soul, please grind them into hamburger and enjoy. It's both desired and feared. Impossible to live with."

"Still," Sarah persisted, "We don't get unlimited chances to have the things that we want, and this I know. Nothing is worse than missing an opportunity that could have changed your life."

Eimile gave her a dirty look. "That's easy for you to say. You guys are just used to it that's all, you already have it.

You have that thing everybody else wants. You can take it for granted."

"Just promise me you'll consider it."

"Fine. I'll consider it."

"You agreed to that way too quickly. You don't mean it."

Eimile gave an exasperated sigh. "Fine. Fine. I mean it. I do. Can we talk about something else now please?"

"Since you're here, before you pick up my family, why not join me for lunch? I'm pretty sure that Jareth will lock himself up in his office for hours."

Before they seated themselves in the Dining Hall, Sarah laid a sleeping Saoirse in a small bassinet used to keep her close to her mother at all times. Both she and Jareth were aware of the troubles coming on the horizon, and felt more comfortable having their daughter nearby.

Their lunch was delivered by several goblins. Only one plate was broken. Sarah counted that as a good omen.

She and Eimile ate their lunch, Sarah laughing at Eimile's impersonations of Tadgh, Jareth, Hoggle and others. She really had a wicked sense of humor. Sarah was softly rocking Saoirse's bassinet the entire time.

After lunch, they both decided to spend some time in the library. As Sarah stood, she reached into the bassinet and discovered that it was empty.

Her heart stopped. How could this be? She had been with them the entire time! How could someone have taken her?

She looked up at Eimile frantically.

"What's wrong?" asked Eimile.

Sarah's eyes were wild and she was beginning to hyperventilate. "Saoirse! She's gone! We have been with her the entire time and she's gone!"

She collapsed to her knees, wailing, "Jareth!"

Eimile knew he would not be able to hear her tucked away in his office. She took off running. When she got to the office doors, she slammed them open, looking for her brother. He was seated at the large table directly across from her. When he saw her face, he became alarmed.

He excused himself from the Privy Council meeting, and stepped out of the office with Eimile, shutting the doors behind them.

Eimile did not wait for his question. "It's Saoirse! She's disappeared! Sarah and I were with her the entire time, she was in her bassinet, and Sarah was rocking her, and suddenly she was gone!"

He didn't waste time running. He transported immediately to the Dining Hall, where he found the empty bassinet. No Sarah, either.

Transporting into the library, he found her, frantically looking around the furniture.

She looked up at her husband with eyes full of tears. "Jareth, you have to believe me! I never left her alone for a second! She's been with me the entire time! I don't know what happened!" She was talking so fast he could barely understand her.

He bent down and helped her to stand. "Of course I believe you, love. This is bizarre, true, but there may be an explanation of some sort. I'm going to send every house staff member we have to check the castle. I've already magically locked every single door and window. We will _find_ her, Sarah."

She nodded at him and ran into the throne room to do some looking on her own. When she couldn't find her, she tore into the sitting room.

There was Saoirse, lying on the sofa. Sarah was so relieved that she dropped to her knees, held the baby close to her and cried with relief.

"Jareth! I found her!"

Jareth appeared in the sitting room. The relief on his face was very evident. He came to Sarah, holding both her and Saoirse in his arms. He kissed the top of Sarah's head.

"Thank the gods she is safe. We still need to figure out what happened here, but the important thing is that she is safe with us now," he reassured Sarah.

Sarah nodded and held her baby more tightly.

~~~Ó~~~

Later, after Eimile had brought Sarah's family down, her father and Karen were cooing at the baby. Karen loved her eyes. "That must be where Toby gets this from," she said. "It must be hereditary."

Toby looked up at Sarah and grinned. Then he went back to playing with the crystal that Jareth had given him. It wasn't very magical, but it did tell stories with pictures. It was quite interesting, really.

"Oh! Oh – I have a present for your baby, Sarah," Toby said.

And it really was from Toby. In going through the baby department of a store Above, Toby found this little outfit and absolutely had to get it for Saoirse. It was a little sleeper with red and white stripes, and a little hat to match.

Sarah felt her jaw drop. Toby was beaming at her. They shared a secret together, and now that he was getting older, it was becoming more and more fun. She winked at him.

"So you can put her in this and then teach her the Magic Dance," he grinned. Jareth was biting a knuckle to keep from laughing.

"We certainly will," said Sarah, "and you're welcome to join us at any time."

"Can I? Cool!" Then his eyes were riveted on the crystal from Jareth again.

Jareth politely excused himself, saying that he had important kingdom meetings to attend. Sarah's family didn't mind, as they had really come to see the baby anyway.

~~~Ó~~~

That evening, the three of them cuddled up in bed together. They still hadn't found an explanation for Saoirse's disappearance, but she was with them now and Sarah did not want to talk about stressful things tonight.

"You know that Tadgh Monaghan has fallen very heavily for your sister, right?"

Jareth shook his head and rolled his eyes. "Tadgh is a fine man. Probably my finest officer. A good man in a storm. The last thing I want is to see my little sister tear his heart to shreds."

"You don't know that's what will happen. Maybe he's just what she needs."

"Eimile needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle. She's far too independent to ever settle down. This relationship, if it ever happens, would be impossible."

He held the baby over his head and asked her, "What do you think, Saoirse? Is your crazy aunt Eimile ever going to get married?"

Saoirse/Jareth responded, in Jareth's baby voice, "Not a chance!"

~~~Ó~~~

**Tadgh = TIGE **

**I'd like to say thank you again for the reviews, they're lovely and they definitely want me to keep writing!**

**Does anyone have an idea as to where Saoirse disappeared to this afternoon?**


	15. You Gave Me The Answer

It can be, especially when you're younger, so easy to believe that you're just fine on your own, that people may be nice to have in your life, but that you can really take care of your own needs. Whether or not you want to admit it, though, humans are social animals. We all need friends and family in our lives.

Call it a clan, call it a network, call it a tribe, call it a family: Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one. – Sarah O'Rourke

It had been several weeks since Saoirse's first disappearance. Since that time, it had happened three more times, the last time she appeared in the garden. While it continued to be terribly frightening for Jareth and Sarah, they weren't quite as alarmed lately because she always came back. It was a mystery though, that they desperately wanted to solve.

Jareth was rarely home these days. He was either visiting with other rulers, or meeting with his own councils. Formorian sightings were becoming more frequent. That afternoon, however, he was relaxing at home in the sitting room with Sarah and Saoirse. Saoirse was in her little bassinet next to Sarah on the sofa. Jareth was in one of the wingback chairs, and they were both reading; Jareth reading _1984_ and Sarah reading _Ulysses_, the first edition copy that had been actually given to her by James Joyce himself.

There was a stack of books next to Jareth that almost reached the arm of his chair. It amazed Sarah, but he was a voracious reader who often read an entire book in at least one day. She found herself gazing at him as the sunlight came through the window, highlighting the planes of his face, his high cheekbones, the look of complete absorption in his eyes. God, he was gorgeous. There were times when she could not believe how her life had turned out.

He must have felt her looking at him, because he looked up at her and smiled. "Penny for your thoughts, love?" He asked.

"Just admiring you," she smiled. "I am a very lucky woman."

He bit his lower lip and smiled, the look that she could never resist.

"You know," she said, "I could go for a little afternoon delight. Saoirse is sleeping and I'm not nearly as tired as I am at night. What do you think?" She tried to put on her most seductive look.

"Don't do this to me," he said in a low voice. "You know we have at least two more weeks to wait. And it's killing me."

"But the books said 4 to 6 weeks. It's been a month," she argued. "I'm anxious to try it out, because Ixonia said that sex be even better after kids, because certain parts of your body have shifted."

He shook his head. "That's a hard no," he replied. "I'm not taking any chances on hurting you. Not open for discussion, love."

Maybe manipulation would work. "You just don't want to make love to me because I'm fat now," she pouted.

"Nice try." He'd gone back to his book and didn't look up. "With nursing, and the yoga you're doing, you're losing weight rather quickly. And you know that I would find you desirable no matter what you looked like. So. Still no."

She made a disgusted sound and threw herself back against the sofa, arms crossed. Jareth looked at her and laughed. "I see 16-year-old Sarah is back. Care to run the Labyrinth since you have so much energy? Tell me how unfair I am being?" He smiled.

Suddenly, a pillow from the sofa flew at him. His reflexes were so good that he easily batted it down. Another one flew out him. "So. That's how it's going to be, is it?"

With his Fae speed, he leapt to the sofa and began tickling her in all of the places he knew she couldn't handle. She was laughing so hard she was out of breath.

"What's that word they use Above that indicates surrender?" He grinned, continuing his merciless tickle attack.

"Uncle," she said between gritted teeth.

"Such a strange term," he mused. "Still, you're going to have to do better than that. I could barely hear you."

While being tickled was making her laugh, she was also becoming incredibly turned on, feeling his weight on top of her. She looked up and kissed him, hard.

He froze in surprise. She gently ran the tip of her tongue along his bottom lip. Just as he was about to return the kiss, someone politely cleared their throat just to the right of the sofa.

They looked up and saw a teenaged Saoirse. "Sorry. Believe me, I never would have intentionally come into this scene. Please get off her, Da."

Jareth never blushed, but something about the disgust in his teenaged daughter's voice was too disarming. He disentangled himself from Sarah and sat back in his chair.

Sarah was laughing. "Saoirse! We haven't seen you in a while!" She patted the sofa cushion next to her.

Saoirse sat down and smiled at her parents. "I wanted to come back to explain my sudden disappearances to you."

Jareth steepled his fingers and looked at her. "I have a theory. Care to share?"

"I'm time traveling." When she saw Sarah about to say something, she raised her hand to stop her.

"First of all, I can't help it. It just happens sometimes, almost like epilepsy. The good news is that while I am this little," and here she indicated the baby with a nod, "I seem to stay right around the castle. Once I get older, I learn to control it better, and can even do it deliberately."

"The idea of my one month old baby daughter suddenly whisking herself backwards or forwards in time and space is not a comforting one, Saoirse," Jareth said sternly.

"Exactly," she replied. "Like I said, I can't help it at this age. But granddad Cillian has a way to help with this. You need to go talk to him, Da."

She leaned over and kissed Sarah on the cheek. Then she walked over to Jareth and gave him a hug. "I have to go, guys. I'm not strong enough yet to travel for very long. Love you!" This time, when she disappeared, it was in a cloud of purple glitter.

Jareth stared at Sarah, chagrined. "That sassy little beour! Throwing shapes like that! That's _my_ signature move!"

Sarah just laughed. With all the glitter being thrown about this castle, she was so glad that she didn't have to clean it.

~~~Ó~~~

Jareth paid a visit to his father right away. He was gone longer than Sarah thought he might be, and that was probably because he had to explain his _own_ time traveling. She could just imagine what Cillian would say about that.

When he returned, he had a tiny bracelet of reflective black stones that he slipped around the baby's wrist. Then he gave a larger one to Sarah, and she noticed that he was already wearing one himself.

"Enchanted hematite," he said. "It will act almost like a tracking device, allowing either of us to find her when she does travel."

His face turned grim. "But when she gets to the age that she can control it, we're going to need to set some serious rules, for her own safety and our mental health." He glanced at Sarah. "But if she's anything like her mother — _stubborn_, we are going to have our work cut out for us."

Sarah sighed and flopped back against the sofa. "We're becoming adults," she said. "When did that happen? And how can we make it stop?"

~~~Ó~~~

The book Jareth was reading, 1984 by George Orwell, was one of David Bowie's favorites. Apparently, he sometimes read one entire book a day. You can find a list of his top 100 favorites online.

Beour = BURR - pretty girl

Throwing shapes - showing off


	16. Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses

"We do our very best, but sometimes it's just not good enough. We lock our doors, we wear a helmet, we stick to the lighted paths, we try to be safe. We try so hard to protect ourselves, but it doesn't make a damn bit of difference. 'Cause when the bad things come, they come out of nowhere. The bad things come suddenly, with no warning. But we forget that sometimes that's how the good things come too."– Sarah O'Rourke

The front door of the castle crashed open is if it had been kicked. A tall, dark haired man in leather armor stepped in, holding an unconscious and bloody Eimile.

Sarah stepped out of the library to see what the noise was. When she saw Eimile like that, with her face turning grey, she felt faint herself. 'Jareth!' She called in her mind. 'We need you now!' Just to be certain, she screamed those words as well.

"Let's put her in here," she indicated, opening a guestroom door. The man, Sarah knew to be a knight, quickly walked over to the bed and very carefully laid her down. Jareth appeared at the foot of the bed. When he saw his sister, his face became contorted with rage.

"Who dared to hurt her?" He snarled at the knight. Jareth had been very agitated lately, and the idea that someone had also hurt a member of his family sent him over the edge. His eyes began to glow blue.

"No one, Highness," the knight said quickly. "She was trying to break one of the new Destriers and slipped in the saddle. I think the page did not appropriately saddle the horse and cinched it too loosely. If she had just fallen off, it might have been an easy matter. But her right foot was caught in the stirrup, and the horse dragged her for nearly a click before I was able to stop him. I brought her here right away. It was the first place I thought of."

Jareth's face relaxed. "Good man, Monaghan. Most likely you've saved her life." Then he turned to his sister, assessing her wounds.

"She will need a healer immediately," he said to himself. He created a crystal and spoke into it, requesting Ixonia's immediate presence. Then he turned back to Eimile to see what healing he could do while they waited.

Sarah and Monaghan stood back, not knowing what to do. Spam had entered the room, looking for Sarah, and just stood silently next to her.

Out of the corner of her eye, Sarah glanced at Monaghan. She had only met him once before, and it had been brief. This was Tadgh – Eimile's would be suitor. He truly was good looking. And, it seemed, truly a knight in shining whatever. Once she had healed, God willing, this rescue might mean something to Eimile and her feelings for him. His face was drawn with worry, however.

Gently, she put her hand on his arm. When he looked down, she spoke quietly to him. "You did the right thing. Jareth can heal her, or at least help her hold on until our official healer can be here. She will be okay, and that is because of you."

She squeezed his arm, and smiled reassuringly at him. He wasn't able to muster a smile, but nodded his head and said, "Thank you, Majesty."

Ixonia raced into the room. She was all business. Setting down her medical kit, she spoke to the three standing up against the wall. "You will all need to wait outside. Jareth and I will do this, and let you know how she's doing when we are done."

The three of them, Sarah, Spam, and Monaghan, all filed out into the hallway. Sarah found a wandering goblin and told him to get some friends and come back with chairs. They sat in the chairs outside the room, while Sarah brought the bassinet with the baby in it from the library.

They waited like that for hours. Sarah taking periodic breaks to feed the baby, and Spam doing her very best to entertain the baby in her bassinet while they waited. Tadgh barely moved. Cillian and Brielle joined them, though few words were spoken between anyone.

Finally Jareth came out of the room. He closed both doors and leaned back against them letting out one long sigh.

His eyes were closed. Moments went by before he said anything. "She's all right. Her hip was dislocated, same with the knee and ankle, one lung was collapsed, and superficial lacerations on her hands, many bruises and some possible head trauma that we will be keeping a close eye on. I brought down a brain specialist and an orthopedic surgeon for help and while she looks dreadful she's all right for now."

Sarah stood up, and noticed tears of relief sitting in Jareth's beautiful eyes. He looked at her and walked over to Monaghan, who had stood up. Jareth placed his hand on the knight's shoulder.

"Monaghan,"

"Your Highness."

"You performed more than admirably today. I was just telling my wife the other night that you were a good man in a storm. You have a clear head and you know how to use it; a courageous heart that allows you to be one of my best knights. And now, I know that I can trust you to even take care of my family."

Tadgh gave a modest nod. "You saved my sister's life today, Monaghan. I will be giving you a special commendation for this as well as my eternal thanks. And now. We are all tired and in shock. What we need now is food, mulled wine and rest by the fire. Monaghan, I would like for you to join us."

Sarah approached Jareth, giving him a long hug. Then she stepped back to look at him and said, "Love, what can I be for you right now? What do you have most need of?"

"Just you my love. Just you." And he hugged her so tightly she thought her ribs might crack.

While Jareth went to wash up, Cillian and Brielle entered the room to see their daughter briefly. Sarah suspected that she was too tired to talk to anyone for long. After they had left, Sarah slipped into Eimile's room, not knowing what she would see.

Ixonia was still there, applying butterfly bandages to the cuts on her patient's face. She was still awake, which surprised Sarah. When she looked down at Eimile's right leg, however, what she saw was shocking. There were pins and braces and screws all up and down her leg. Actual screws, drilled into the bone of her leg. All Sarah could do was silently stare.

The voice that she heard was hoarse but had humour in it. "You should see your face right now. I wish I had one of Jareth's camera thingies from Above so I could take a picture. I'd venture to guess right now that your face looks worse than mine." And then Eimile laughed, just a little, until she started to cough. Ixonia was quick to give her ice chips and water. Sarah approached and took her hand.

Eimile looked at Sarah. "I am fine. Or I will be. I understand you waited outside the door the entire time." Sarah had tears filling her eyes. Eimile looked at her hand, covered by Sarah's. "Oh don't. We're not going to do one of those weepy, crying, huggy emotional things, are we? Because I just don't think I can take that right now."

Sarah couldn't help it. A few of the tears did come, while she was laughing. She came so close to losing her best friend, and to hear her speak, she sounded none the worse for wear, although Sarah knew differently. She was so relieved. And the fact that Eimile didn't want to hug was something that she would absolutely say.

"You can leave now," Eimile said quietly. "I'll see you in the morning. Can you send Tadgh in here please?" Sarah nodded and left.

She told Tadgh that he could go in as she was leaving. He shut the door behind him. By the time she and Jareth had finished dinner, they were still talking behind closed doors. Sarah smiled a little to herself.

~~~Ó~~~

Ixonia and a night nurse watched over Eimile all evening. Apparently Cillian came by as well, and Jareth checked on her periodically throughout the night.

When they woke in the morning, Sarah and Jareth were facing one another. He put his hand on her hip and smiled at her.

"You know what day today is, don't you?" He asked.

She smiled at him. "Not really."

He smiled back. "It's been six weeks." She was confused for a second. Six weeks since what? Then it hit her. Oh!

Her eyes widened. Jareth smiled at her and nodded slightly. "Shall we?"

She was still sleepy, but was certainly waking up now. "Well we could, but there's a baby in the bed."

Jareth looked down at Saoirse, sleeping peacefully between them. "This is true. There _is_ a baby in the bed," he said, as if surprised.

Silently, they both slipped out of bed, each of them putting a pillow on one side of Saoirse so she couldn't roll off. Jareth lead Sarah to a chaise lounge on the opposite wall. He put one arm around her on her back and with the other, gently held her just underneath her breast, his thumb tracing circles over her nipple. He leant down to kiss her and it was a soft, sweet kiss. Almost like a first kiss. Sarah could feel the tension in his body though, as if he were about to spring and was holding himself back. Oh, it had been so long.

Then Saoirse woke and began to cry. Jareth bit his bottom lip, shook his head and looked down at the floor.

Sarah looked toward her daughter and then at Jareth. "I just fed her an hour ago." He nodded. "She must want changing then," he said. "Why don't you take the first shower, and I'll clean her up and dress her?"

When Sarah returned from her shower, she found Jareth on the bed on his back, Saoirse lying on top of him, wearing her little red and white striped sleeper. He was talking to her, and then Sarah realized that he was also having a sort of conversation, using the voice he used when he pretended that Saoirse could talk back.

"Can we do Magic Dance now, Da?"

"Well, Da needs a shower first, and then we're going to check on your auntie Eimile, but then, yes, of course!"

He looked over at Sarah.

"And Da?" Saoirse's/Jareth's voice.

"You're my favorite. Just don't tell Mommy."

He glanced over at Sarah and grinned.

She shook her head. "I wasn't aware there was a contest. But if you want to be the favorite, fine. Good luck feeding her, though," and she smiled wickedly.

He held Saoirse above his head up in the air and wiggled her a little bit, which made her laugh. She was just starting to giggle. "But remember it's your Da who is going to buy you a pony," he said. "And anything else you want when you're older."

"Oh, so you're buying our daughter's affection, now, are you?" Asked Sarah, flopping down on the bed next to them. "Give me that baby."

Jareth handed her over to Sarah, and slid off the bed toward the bathroom. Seconds later, he stuck his head out the door and said to Sarah, "Just so you know, I'm going to make passionate love to you this afternoon when our child is finally sleeping."

Sarah rolled her eyes at him. Then she looked at Saoirse. "And you're going to take a nice long nap today, right, my baby girl?"

~~~Ó~~~

Quick note: a Destrier does not refer to a breed, but to a type of horse: the finest and strongest warhorse. These horses were usually stallions, bred and raised from foalhood specifically for the needs of war. The Destrier was also considered the most suited to the joust; horses seem to have been preferred for other forms of warfare. They had powerful hindquarters, able to easily coil and spring to stop, spin, turn or sprint forward. They also had a short back and well-muscled loin, strong bone, and a well-arched neck.

They were also terribly expensive and most knights could not afford one. (Generally knights had to purchase their own horses and armor.) Remember, however, that Eimile is Royalty and a skilled horsewoman. Ancestors of Destrians from those times are probably today's Percherons or Andalusians – large, powerful draft horses.


	17. One More Chance

"A couple of hundred years ago, Benjamin Franklin shared with the world Above the secret of his success. 'Never leave that till tomorrow,'he said, 'which you can do today.' This is the man who discovered electricity. You think more people would listen to what he had to say. I don't know why we put things off, but if I had to guess, I'd have to say it has a lot to do with fear. Fear of failure, fear of rejection, sometimes the fear is just of making a decision, because what if you're wrong? What if you're making a mistake you can't undo? The early bird catches the worm. A stitch in time saves nine. He who hesitates is lost. We can't pretend we hadn't been told. We've all heard the proverbs, heard the philosophers, heard our grandparents warning us about wasted time, heard the damn poets urging us to seize the day. Still sometimes we have to see for ourselves. We have to make our own mistakes. We have to learn our own lessons. We have to sweep today's possibility under tomorrow's rug until we can't anymore. Until we finally understand for ourselves what Benjamin Franklin really meant. That knowing is better than wondering, that waking is better than sleeping, and even the biggest failure, even the worst, beat the hell out of never trying." – Sarah O'Rourke

They headed down the large, curved staircase. Sarah, and Jareth holding Saoirse. From the bottom of the stairs they could see Eimile's room, and that her door was open. They heard laughter coming from the guestroom.

Inside, they found Finn, Eimile and Tadhg. Tadgh was standing, Finn was sitting in the arm chair closest to Eimile, one leg hanging over the side. Jareth handed the baby to Sarah, and walked up to his sister, placing his hand on her hand.

"How are you? I've been stopping by to check on you throughout the night. You were sleeping several hours ago, so I don't know if you knew that I was here."

"I knew. Those big clompy feet of yours make more noise than you think. I just kept my eyes shut because I wanted to fall asleep."

He grinned. If her attitude were any indication, she was certainly beginning to feel like herself again.

"And what the hell have you done to my leg? This looks like something out of a Tim Burton nightmare!"

Sarah started to explain, but Jareth filled her in quickly again on the need for two doctors from Above as well as his and Ixonia's healing powers.

"So this isn't something that were able to just magically heal right away. We were able to do much, and you're going to heal faster than any human, certainly, but the screws in your leg are going to be there for a little while. Some wounds are deeper than they first appear. And require more than just a quick fix."

"That's pretty much exactly what I said to her last night," added Tadgh.

She glared at both of them.

Finn tried to lighten things up. "But before you know it, you'll be jiggy with it again. You'll be getting down with the get down…" and here he did a little dance in his chair.

No one responded.

"What? Too soon? I thought that was hilarious!" He said.

Sarah spoke up. "Why don't we get breakfast. Jareth, I believe that you promised Saoirse something," and here she winked at him, "Finn, you can come with us." She looked at the tray of mostly uneaten food next to Eimile on the bed.

"Are you not hungry, Eimile? Should I have the kitchen make something different for you?"

Eimile glanced over at her cold breakfast. She sighed. "That would be good, I think. And have them bring something for Tadgh too, with meat in it, I think."

Tadgh grinned at her.

Sarah could feel her eyebrows raise. "So you would like to have breakfast in here with Tadgh, then?"

Eimile nodded, and Sarah gave Jareth a meaningful glance as they filed out of the room. He just smirked and shrugged his shoulders.

~~~Ó~~~

After breakfast, Finn headed out, Jareth took the baby into the throne room, and Sarah stopped by to speak to Eimile. This time, she was alone.

"So," Sarah said, pulling up a chair. "I was going to ask you how you're doing, but you know me better than that."

"Yes I do," said Eimile. There was a little smile playing round her lips. "You wanna know about my love life, don't you?"

Sarah smiled and shook her head quickly. "Tell me! Tell me everything! He saved your life! He's gorgeous, he's funny, intelligent, how are you feeling about him right now? He's obviously crazy about you! What do you think? How are you feeling?"

"You mean am I in love? It's a little early for that, don't you think? Besides, I think for me that love exists only in delusional fantasies."

Sarah responded. "I think you're going to let your cynicism hurt you in the long run. I mean, think about it. Do you know who you are? Do you know what's happened to you? Do you want to live this way? All it takes is one person, one moment to change your life forever. It can change your perspective, change the color of your thinking. One moment that forces you to rethink everything you know. Maybe this is your one moment."

Eimile sucked on her coffee spoon, staring up at the ceiling as if she were thinking hard.

"I don't know… I've actually known Tadgh for forever. We've been good friends for forever. And then he goes and changes things up on me and tells me he's in love with me." She snorted. Sarah tried to hide a smile.

"I mean, I have had relationships, believe it or not. Not super serious ones or anything, but most of my relationships started out as friends and then became more and then you know, died...screaming."

"Well," Sarah said thoughtfully, looking right into Eimile's eyes, "it's okay to be scared. Love can be terrifying. Relationships can be frightening. Some of us are scared of commitments. And some of us let them slip out of our grasps. Commitments are complicated. We may surprise ourselves at the commitments we are willing to make. True commitment takes effort and sacrifice. Which is why sometimes we have to learn the hard way, to chose our commitments very carefully."

Eimile let out a deep breath. "I know. I have a lot to think about. So when did you become the wise Queen?" She grinned.

Sarah's eyes smiled back. "I never did. I'm just making this all up as I go along."

~~~Ó~~~

Heading into the throne room, Sarah could hear the notes of Jareth's Magic Dance, along with crazily giggling goblins singing along.

She stopped and leaned against the doorway, just watching. Jareth couldn't see her.

"I saw my baby, crying hard as babe could cry

What could I do?

My baby's love had gone

And left my baby blue

Nobody knew

What kind of magic spell to use

Slime and snails

Or puppy dog tails?

Thunder or lightning

Then baby said – "

And when Saoirse giggled, Jareth threw her up into the air, a good 20 feet or so. She came down and Jareth expertly caught her.

Sarah's shriek escaped even though her hand was tightly clamped over her own mouth.

Jareth looked over at her with a smile of satisfaction. "Well, come on, laugh!"

"Laugh? Laugh? What the hell do you think you're doing? You could have dropped her!"

Jareth swaggered up to her, holding the baby on his hip. "Darling, you forget who you're talking to. I'm the Goblin King. I've been taking care of babies for thousands of years!"

"Not this baby you haven't!" She snapped, reaching for her daughter. "You have to promise me you are never going to try that again!"

"What if I try it but not so high?"

She glared at him.

"What if I only do it when you're in the room?"

Icy silence.

"What if," and he began nuzzling her neck, tracing soft kisses down to her collarbone.

"What if we ask our very overpaid and underworked nanny to watch our daughter for just a few hours while I take you upstairs?"

By this time his left hand was playing with her hair while his right hand cupped her breast. Damn! She was absolutely melting. He was so incredibly hot, and irresistible and it had been far too long…

She looked at him through hooded eyes, a seductive smile playing on her lips. She handed the baby over to Jareth and said, "you find the nanny and I'll meet you upstairs."

~~~Ó~~~


	18. Turn Off The Lights

"And just when you've gotten the lay of the land, the ground underneath you shifts. And knocks you off your feet."

Sarah Ó Rourke

Sarah hurried upstairs and changed into a silk négligée she had been saving. It was a deep red, almost burgundy, that came to mid thigh with a very low V in front.

She swept on some mascara, a bit of highlighting cream to her eyelids and cheekbones, and a lip stain that she knew Jareth loved. Brushing out her luxuriant dark hair, she looked at herself in the mirror and smiled. She wanted this to be special.

Lying on the bed, she tried different, seductive poses. She finally decided on one where she was lying on her side, upper arm lying across her hip, and the other hand on top of the pillow next to her head. Unbeknownst to her, Jareth was in the door frame leaning against the door frame, arms crossed, smiling.

He wore nothing but his medallion and dark blue silk pajama pants. She could stare at that lean, muscled chest forever.

When she caught him watching her she blushed. Then she said, "Hello gorgeous. Imagine meeting you here."

He walked toward her slowly, biting his lower lip for a moment. "Do you have any idea at all how difficult it has been for me not to make love to you for so long?" he asked.

He had already decided that this was going to be a slow, gentle lovemaking. Later, once Sarah was used to it again, he was going to absolutely ravish her.

He kicked off his boots, and knelt on the bed. Slowly, he crawled toward her on the bed, never breaking eye contact. His pupils were so dilated that the right one almost appeared to make his eye look black.

When he reached her, he slid his right arm under her neck, supporting himself with his left on the bed.

"May I kiss you?" His voice was already husky.

All she could do was nod. God, he was a breathtaking creature!

"Close your eyes." he said.

"No."

He raised an eyebrow. "But –"

She smiled up at him. "I want to see you."

"So you shall kiss me with your eyes open, then?"

"I've decided to make love to you with my eyes open the entire time," she replied, her gaze shining.

He tipped his head to her neck, kissing her jawline until he softly kissed her bottom lip, gently sucking on it.

She reached her arms around his neck, kissing him back more urgently. He smiled through the kiss. He intended to take this slowly.

She reached her hands into his hair, trying to pull him closer. Maddeningly, he remained, weight held on his elbows as he slowly showered her mouth and face with kisses that were soft and almost luminous.

She has been wanting him for so long now, and it was finally happening. She actually felt slightly dizzy and could feel her eyes roll back as he gently took one of her nipples in his mouth through the silk fabric of her négligée. She arched her back toward him. He made a noise somewhere between a growl and a laugh and pulled her closer.

Jareth pushed one knee between her legs to part them. Softly, he traced his left hand down the length of her body and reached up underneath the silk.

"Why, your ladyship! I believe you have forgotten your panties!"

She grinned at him. "Try again. I _am_ wearing a G string."

"Ooh. I like G. I could play with your G string all day!"

She laughed softly and his fingers reached up to part her folds. "Oh darling," he growled in his deep baritone register. "You are so wet. Already!"

Sarah could feel his hardness through his silk pants, pushing up against her thigh.

"I'm not the only one," she purred. "How long are you going to torment me for?"

He had buried his face into the delicious curve of her neck. He began to suck on the soft flesh there; knowing it drove her mad. He mumbled something unintelligible.

"What was that?" she asked.

Reluctantly he pulled away from her neck. "I don't think I'm going to last as long as I had thought," he said. "I had wanted to draw this out for as long as possible, but that's becoming harder and harder to do."

"Pardon the pun." he added.

"Oh, yes. The pun. Is that what they're calling it these days?"

"You. Are A Very. Sassy. Girl. You always were…" he growled, reaching behind her to slide the négligée off.

She gave a faint huff of indignation and reached for his waistband, saying, "help me with this." He lifted his hips, and expertly used one foot to pull his pants completely off.

He bent her head back across his arm again and kissed her, softly at first, then with a swift gradation of intensity that made her cling to him as the only solid thing in a dizzying whirl. His insistent mouth was now parting her shaking lips, sending wild tremors along her nerves, evoking from her sensations she had forgotten she had ever had.

Only Jareth could do this to her. Only he ever could. She wanted him so much it physically hurt.

Now.

Gently, she bit his lower lip to break the kiss and get his attention. He raised his head and looked at her.

In her eyes was a combination of mischief, love, and complete lust.

Now.

She was breathing hard and looked back up at him. "Love?"

"Please, Jareth. Please, now!"

"Ah, hell with waiting! Are you sure?" He asked as he situated himself between her knees.

"Oh my god yes," she replied.

"I prefer oh my Goblin King yes."

She looked up at him with wild eyes, shaking arms around his lean, muscled shoulders.

"I love you," he whispered and pushed himself slowly into her. There was slight pain but she welcomed it. He moved slowly, not wanting to hurt her. The little pain she did feel was soon spiraling into pure ecstasy.

She thrust and pushed, demanding he go faster and harder. He fulfilled her every request.

He could feel her muscles contracting around him tightly. The fluttering muscles were a sign that she was close. He rolled over holding her on top of him so that he was now on his back.

He reached between them and felt that sweet little button of flesh, already swollen. Gently he begin to circle it with his thumb as she continued riding him.

She moaned and closed her eyes.

He pushed himself further into her, thrusting faster. She gasped, and he could feel her nearing the edge.

"Sarah," he whispered hoarsely, "you don't know what you do to me. I'm not going to last very long…"

Suddenly she arched back, her nipples pointing up, and he could feel her shaking and shuddering. He reached for her hands.

"Oh my God, Jareth Jareth! Oh God, don't stop!"

He kept her pace, wanting her to come first. As her screams turned into gasps, she bent down, and laid her head on his shoulder.

He flipped her again, so that he was on top. This way he could see her beautiful body. She was slick with desire.

His thrusts became more rapid, and he held both her hands back on the pillow. Sarah. His Sarah.

"Love?" She looked up at him

"Look at me. Look into my eyes."

They locked eyes together as he came inside her. She couldn't believe that he could go so deep. She could feel him pouring himself into her.

Jareth collapsed on top of Sarah, then rolled over so they were lying side-by-side. Sarah laid her head on his chest and he gently covered her with the bedsheets. He kissed the top of her head.

They were both breathing heavily still.

"I promise the next time it's going to be longer," he said. She just smiled.

"So are you saying that you just can't control yourself around me?" She asked teasingly, tracing circles over his chest.

"I'm afraid so," he said frankly. "And that's saying something, when you consider that I've been able to control myself with every other person I've been with for hundreds of years…you, my dear, completely own me; body, heart and soul."

She smiled and snuggled into him more closely. That was when the screams began.

~~~Ó~~~

Deirdre, Saoirse's nanny, was glad for the chance to spend time with the beautiful little baby. She was a young Fae, and because Sarah wanted to mostly raise her child herself, Deirdre often had nothing to do. She had held the little girl gently, quietly singing an old Fae lullaby. The child had gone to sleep relatively quickly, and Deirdre carefully put her in the crib in the nursery. She pulled a rocking chair up to the crib, and began reading one of the books from Above that Sarah had lent her.

Humming quietly to herself while reading, Deirdre didn't notice the greasy black shadow that had appeared in a corner of the room, near the crib. Slowly, it grew and slid over to the baby. It had taken on a monstrous, indescribable form, and seemed to be becoming more solid with each moment.

Hideous hand-like appendages reached for the baby. Deirdre sensed something, and looked up. The creature was just about to pick up Saoirse when Deirdre let out a bloodcurdling scream. The evil black form glared at her with blazing orange eyes. Deirdre lunged for the crib, snatching the baby and running to the door.

Jareth had heard her, and was standing in the doorway within seconds. He took one look at Deirdre's face, his daughter, safely in her arms, and was able to catch a glimpse of the malevolent black shape melting back against the wall and disappearing into the corner.

Jareth looked at Deirdre again. He had caught her by both arms. The girl's eyes were huge, she was gasping for breath, and shaking, clearly terrified. Jareth tried to calm her. "It's all right now, Deirdre."

He carefully took his daughter into his own arms, still looking at the nanny. "You did well, Deirdre, his voice was low and quiet. You most likely saved her."

"Wh-what _was _that?" she was still shaking.

"More than likely one of the Formorian shape shifters that have been spotted in increasing numbers throughout the Underground," he said, grimly.

Not yet able to transport on her own, Sarah had rounded the corner in a robe, a look of sheer terror on her face. She saw Jareth, Deirdre, and Saoirse, all safe. She still ran to them, questions in her eyes.

Jareth explained all that had happened, including the rescue by Deirdre. Sarah wanted to be sick.

"I know you've been talking about them being spotted in greater numbers, but to have one in our home? Would they really be that bold?" She reached for the baby with shaking hands.

Jareth handed her over to her mother, his mouth a grim straight line. "It would seem that way," he said shortly. "This is definitely escalating. I'm calling a meeting of the Privy Council immediately." He disappeared, doubtless heading for his office.

Sarah and Deirdre looked at each other with frightened eyes. Still, Sarah was not going to be intimidated by this, much as her panicking brain was telling her to. She held the baby firmly against her chest, and grabbed Deirdre's hand.

"Deirdre, I cannot thank you enough," Sarah said. "You look like you may be in shock. Let's get you in front of a fire with a mug of mulled wine. I could use one too. His Majesty is going to get to the bottom of this, I'm sure." They retreated to Sarah's sitting room.

An hour or so later, Finn, Cillian, Jareth and Tadgh all transported into the sitting room. The air around them crackled with anger and purpose.

Cillian approached Sarah immediately and laid a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Are you all right, Sarah? This has been quite a horrible surprise."

She nodded appreciatively. "I am, Cillian. And we all have Deirdre here to thank for her quick thinking." She looked at Deirdre and smiled. "You have officially become indispensable, Deirdre."

Finn magicked mugs of the hot, spiced wine to the others, and, in want of something harder, pulled a flask from his coat, taking a large swig. As he swallowed, he looked around the room holding out the flask to everyone, silently asking if anyone would like to share.

Jareth took him up on the offer, and held the flask out to Sarah, who declined. He then gave it to Cillian.

Seating himself between Sarah and Deirdre, Jareth created a crystal and spoke briefly into it, before rolling it over his knuckles and making it disappear.

"Was that your mother and sister?" Asked Cillian, reaching for the baby. "May I hold my beautiful gariníon?" He smiled at Sarah.

Sarah smiled back and handed Sarah to her grandfather.

"Yes," replied Jareth. No sooner had he said that than Brielle and Eimile appeared in the doorway. Cillian had told them everything before he had left for the Privy Council emergency meeting. Tadgh approached Eimile, who was still on crutches, and led her to a chair.

Jareth put an arm over the back of the sofa next to Sarah. When she turned to him, they both leaned their foreheads together. "Mo shíorghrá," said Jareth quietly. She reached for both his hands. Jareth knew it was now time to share some critical information with the family on what looked to be an upcoming war.

~~~Ó~~~

Mo shíorghrá - Mo Cuishle (COOSH-la) Literally means 'my pulse', for the person who makes your heart beat. Often generally translated as 'my darling'.

Garinion - – (GA-rinn-een) Granddaughter

A/N: David Bowie was a guest on many talk shows, and I'm trying to see every interview that I can. There was a particularly funny one where Jimmy Fallon had asked him to play a song, with Fallon accompanying him on guitar. While he was playing, a guitar string broke. David looked at it, laughing, and said, "I think you just broke your G string." It gave me an idea for part of this chapter.


	19. Open Your Eyes

"Forty years ago, The Beatles asked the world a simple question. They wanted to know where all the lonely people came from. My latest theory is that a great many of the lonely people are deathly afraid of rejection - of getting hurt. Which means that at the end of the day, all we really have is ourselves and nothing in this world can make you feel more alone than that.

400 hundred years ago, another well known English guy had an opinion about being alone. John Donne, he thought we were never alone. Of course, it was fancier when he said it. 'No man is an island entire to itself.' Boil down that island talk and he just meant that all any one needs is someone to step in and let us know we're not alone. And who's to say that someone can't be someone who's been there all along?"

Eimile Ó Rourke

As the weather was still too cold to sit outside, Sarah had taken to having her tea and reading in the conservatory most often these days. She realized she had forgotten the book she wanted, and went upstairs to the master chambers to retrieve it.

As she the turned the corner, she could hear the laughter of a girl and Jareth's patient voice explaining something.

Setting foot in the bedroom, she saw Jareth sitting at her dressing table with a lovely dark-haired girl. Saoirse. This time she looked to be about 13 or 14 years old.

Sarah's make up was out, and Jareth had been applying eyeliner, shadow, and highlighter to one of Saoirse's eyes. She looked delighted and turned toward Sarah.

"What do you think, Mom?"

"I think you look frighteningly like your father," Sarah said. "When I first met him."

"Well," said Jareth, "She _does_ have my eyes." There was the undertone of a chuckle in those words.

"You're too young to be wearing make up like that," said Sarah. This was her matter of fact, 'don't argue with me' tone.

Both Jareth and Saoirse pouted. Sarah was struck by how similar they looked.

"I just wanted to come back and get some make up tips from Da before I actually start wearing it on my own," Saoirse explained. "And I figured, who better to ask?" She grinned at her father.

Jareth leaned back in his chair, arms crossed, with a smug smile on his face. Sarah looked at them both with one eyebrow raised.

"So you approached your father with this instead of me?"

Saoirse hastened to clarify. "Mom, unless you're going out, you just don't wear very much make up. And Da has been doing it for hundreds of years, as the 'spectacular Goblin King,' so I just thought he might know more…" she finished off, lamely.

Sarah sighed. "Honey, it's not that my feelings are hurt, I just don't think that it is age-appropriate for you to be running around looking like that." Jareth looked offended.

"You have to admit love, no one knows their way around a make up kit like I do," He inserted.

"And you do, and I get that your look is part and parcel of your station and character," Sarah replied. "But Saoirse, you're _what_ right now? 13? 14?"

"I'm 13." Saoirse's voice was beginning to have an edge. Their daughter had many of both of their characteristics, one of which was stubbornness. Sarah and Jareth shared a look.

"Love," said Jareth to Saoirse, "I think your mother is simply saying that perhaps we can tone things down a bit for now. You'll be older before you know it, and then you are free to experiment with make up as much as you'd like. Here, look at me so that I can do your other eye more moderately. Then you can tell me what you think." He looked around Saoirse at his wife, who nodded approvingly.

Sarah found her book, and since her "older" daughter was here, decided to stick around. She sat cross legged on the bed, quietly enjoying the father daughter banter.

There was a brief knock on the door frame and Eimile walked in. She had healed enough now so that she no longer needed crutches. She looked at Jareth and Saoirse, then at Sarah, sitting on the bed.

"Nothing like a father/daughter make up session," she noted, smiling at Sarah. Sarah just rolled her eyes.

"Hi, Aunt Eimile." Saoirse waved at her but did not move her head as Jareth was working his artistry on her face.

Eimile threw herself on the bed next to Sarah, elbows on the bed, chin in hand. "Hey yourself, Rebel. Geez. I can never get used to your little pop up appearances. How old are you right now anyway?"

"13," she responded. She was trying to keep her mouth still so that her father could apply a peach gloss to her lips.

"And you were just, what? Seven when I caught you in the kitchen yesterday?" Eimile asked.

Both Sarah and Jareth looked at one another and said "What?" at the same time.

"Oh, yeah," Eimile responded casually. "The little princess over here has figured out that the kitchen staff have a soft spot for her, so when she feels like a snack, say, a cookie," and here she looked at Saoirse, "and you won't give her one, she just does her little time traveling bit and they give her whatever she wants."

Saoirse turned to give her aunt a look of complete betrayal.

"Oh dear. Did I say that out loud?" Eimile smirked.

Saoirse slitted her eyes at her aunt, looking just like her mother for a second. Then she flounced back around so that Jareth could finish her make up.

Jareth was holding a make up brush between his teeth, but managed to say, "Young lady, we are going to have a talk about this traveling to the kitchen which you are doing. If your mother and I don't want you to have a snack before dinner, there's a good reason."

"Namely proper nutrition," said Eimile, examining her fingernails. Saoirse huffed.

"There! What do you think?" Jareth turned Saoirse so that she could look into the mirror. She was still definitely wearing make up, but it had been toned down to allow her freshness and youth to shine through.

Saoirse smiled at her reflection, then turned to hug her father. "Thanks, Da! You did a lot of cool things there that I'm still not sure how to do, so is it okay if we have a few more sessions?"

Jareth smiled, and Saoirse made her way to the bed to hug her mother. "You," she told her aunt, "don't get a hug."

"Fine with me, Stinkerbelle," shot back Eimile. She grinned at her."Fist bumps?"

Saoirse gave her a wry smile and they bumped knuckles. Then she glittered out of the room.

Eimile looked at the glitter on the carpet and laughed. "And it's purple! How perfect for royalty!"

Jareth grumbled. "It's also one of _my_ signature moves."

"Well, Da, what is it they say about imitation and sincere flattery?" Eimile asked, grinning.

"That's what I told him," said Sarah, "but you know your brother, where there's glitter involved, he gets a little possessive." She looked at Eimile. "Why are you here anyway? What's up?"

Jareth interrupted. "You two are going to be up to something, I can smell it! I'm leaving and will see you later." He gave Sarah an air kiss as he walked out the door.

~~~Ó~~~

Eimile flipped onto her back and sighed. "I don't know if I'm up to this relationship thing."

"What? Tadgh?" asked Sarah. "You've only been on a few official dates so far, how do you know? And have you – "

"No," Eimile said irritably. "Just kissing."

"Love," she snorted. "Did you know that neurologists Above will tell you that it activates the same part of the brain as a habit forming addiction? It makes us feel like we can do anything, be anything, achieve anything. And once we taste it, we want more. The thing about love is, when it's good, it's so very good. And when it's bad, it hurts so much. And if you can't find a way to balance all those ups and downs, it'll drive you crazy." She threw her arm over her eyes.

Sarah moved closer to her, a big smile on her face. "You said the word love," she said in a singsong voice.

"Shut up. And yes, I did. Partly thanks to you. Here I was, having fun, casual sex and no commitments, and then you and Tadgh decide to come and change my mind." She glared at Sarah from underneath her arm. "I'm telling you, if I get hurt and torn apart by all of this I'm blaming you!"

Sarah just snickered. "Welcome to the Dark Side."

"He's all I can think about lately," complained Eimile. "And it's ridiculous. It's all the damn time. And all these things about him that I never noticed before, when we were just friends, all of these things are just making me crazy for him….."

Sarah laid down next to her, patting her shoulder sympathetically. "I really do know what you're going through, you know. And yes, it's scary. But trust me, and you know I've said this before, but anything worth having is worth taking a risk for."

They both lay there silently for a few minutes, staring up at the ceiling.

Then Sarah said, "So when are you going to see him next?"

"Tonight actually. He's asked me to dinner at The Glass Onion."

"Ooh," Sarah nodded approvingly. "The gourmet bistro in the Elven quarter?"

"Yes," Eimile replied, "And before you ask, I know exactly what I'm going to wear, so I'm all set." Suddenly she sat up.

"Do you remember what you told me once?"

Sarah looked confused. "I've told you lots of things."

"You know, the thing you said when you said that knowing is better than wondering. Waking is better than sleeping, and even the biggest failure, even the worst, beats the hell out of never trying? That."

"Wow. I really said that? That's pretty good." Sarah winked at her.

"Yeah, well. Your weird voodoo is working. I feel clear. I feel clear as to what I want, and I don't feel guilty about trying to get it. I'm going to tell him I love him." She hopped off the bed and left the room.

Sarah wrapped her arms around her knees and smiled. The next best thing to falling in love yourself was watching it happen to a friend.

~~~Ó~~~


	20. The Gift

We hope for the best but prepare for the worst." – Jareth Ó Rourke

In the middle of the night, Sarah heard Saoirse begin to cry. There was a guard posted outside her door every time she was sleeping alone, because of the last Formorian incident. However, Sarah knew this cry - it meant she was lonely, and she silently slipped out of bed to go to her baby.

Standing at the crib, looking at the child, was a very large man in leather armor, heavily muscled, with long blonde hair. He had a glow about him that was clearly supernatural. This time however, she didn't panic. She had met this man before. He was Jareth's grandfather, and his name was Lugh.

Lugh was also one of the most prominent gods in Irish mythology. A member of the Tuatha Dé Danann, Lugh was a warrior, a king, a master craftsman and a saviour. To this day, he is associated with skill and mastery in multiple disciplines, including the arts. He is also associated with oaths, truth and the law, and therefore with rightful kingship. Lugh is linked with the harvest festival of Lughnasadh, which bears his name. His most common epithets are Lámfada, "of the long arm," possibly for his skill with a spear or his ability as a ruler) and Samildánach ("equally skilled in many arts"). Lugh died when he was drowned in battle, and as one of the Tuatha dé, upon death, went to the Land of Youth, Tír na nÓg.

Sarah had met him briefly at Samhain, a time when the veil between worlds was thin. She wasn't aware that he could visit at other times.

As though reading her mind, he turned to her. "Greetings, Gariníon. I am here to bestow gifts that will aid you in the coming war."

Of course he could read her mind. He was a god, but he was also Tuath and family. She curtsied, thinking, so there really _will _be a war. She was hoping there would be small skirmishes at the most.

He took her face in his hands and looked deeply into her eyes. His face bore a resemblance to Jareth's, although Jareth was lean and muscular – Lugh was heavily muscled and almost seven feet tall.

"As I have said before, you are strong and wise. Necessary attributes for a good Queen."

"Thank you, your Grace," Sarah said.

"In the upcoming war the kingdom – nay, the entire Otherworld, will need intelligent strategists. That is a role destined for you, and I have a gift for you to strengthen that." With that, he traced a Celtic spiral on her forehead with his thumb. It burned sharply for a second, but then mellowed to a faint warmth.

He had released her face, but kept his eyes intently upon her. "Your daughter is to receive one as well, and with her gift of turning time, this will serve her well. It is the gift of Samildánach, the skill of many arts. My InÍon Garphaíste is high spirited, and this will allow her to manage her life productively."

"So you know about her time traveling. Might you know why she can do this?"

Lugh gave an unexpected smile, and laid his hand on her belly. "When my Garmac Jareth decided to meddle with time travel, there was an unexpected consequence. You, being human and not Immortal at the time, were affected. Jareth was not."

"Your eggs, a mother's necessary part of bearing a child, were altered. The time travel changed you, and any child you might bear. Once you became an Immortal, however, that altered things as well. If you bear another child, he will not have that ability."

Of course. They had been warned about the dangers of time travel and unexpected consequences. Yet she and Jareth had gone to Paris in the 1920s for their honeymoon. This explained so much. But then – then he had said that if she had another child it would be male. Her eyes widened at this.

He looked at her and briefly nodded. Then he bent over the crib and gently used his thumb to trace the Celtic spiral on Saoirse's forehead. She began to cry again, doubtless because of the initial pain.

Lugh turned back to her. "You will see me again shortly. Please give my blessings to my Garmac." And with that, he shimmered and disappeared.

Sarah bent down and took her daughter in her arms. She sat down in the rocking chair next to the crib and begin to sing softly to her in her clear Irish soprano:

"I took my love, I took it down

I climbed a mountain and I turned around

And I saw my reflection in the snow covered hills

'Til the landslide brought me down

Oh, mirror in the sky

What is love?

Can the child within my heart rise above?

Can I sail through the changin' ocean tides?

Can I handle the seasons of my life?

Well, I've been afraid of changin'

'Cause I've built my life around you

But time makes you bolder

Even children get older

And I'm getting older too

Well, I've been afraid of changin'

'Cause I've built my life around you

But time makes you bolder

Even children get older

And I'm getting older too

Oh! I'm getting older too

Oh-oh, take my love, take it down

Oh-oh, climb a mountain and you turn around

And if you see my reflection in the snow covered hills

Well the landslide bring it down

And if you see my reflection in the snow covered hills

Well the landslide bring it down

The landslide bring it down"

~~~Ó~~~

The next morning, Jareth woke Sarah with soft kisses on her shoulder and neck. She murmured softly and turned toward him, smiling with her eyes closed.

"Love," she said, "I have something I need to tell you."

"I already know. Remember?"

"Lugh said that our next child would be a boy. But I know I'm not pregnant yet."

"Maybe that's something we need to work on," Jareth smiled, his hand gently sliding up her silk gown.

She bent her head back on the pillow, arching her back slightly, just loving his touch. He raised himself on one elbow and kissed her softly. She kissed him back, sweetly tracing his lower lip with the tip of her tongue. She could hear a slight growl in the back of his throat.

That gave her the impetus to insert her tongue between his lips, tasting his velvet softness and reaching for him. Her core was becoming warmer, almost electric. Jareth could do this to her with just a touch or sometimes, just a look. Oh, how she wanted him. She marveled at how lucky she was to have someone wake up next to her that she loved and wanted this much.

He had knelt on the bed, with one knee between her legs. Cupping a breast underneath the silk, he gently pinched her nipple. He looked deeply into her eyes and bent down to kiss her again, this time harder and more urgently. Sarah raised her hips to feel his hardness. She let out a small whimper of desire.

Suddenly there was an urgent knocking at the door. Jareth's eyes flashed. Since Sarah had come back, his infamously quick temper had all but disappeared. At times however, like right now, it reappeared.

"Who is it?" he snarled.

"It's Finn, Jareth. I wouldn't have awakened you this early but there's been a Formorian attack right in our kingdom. Several goblin houses were set afire last night. I thought you would want to meet with the Privy Council." His voice was strong and completely serious. Not the joking Finn that Sarah was so used to.

At this news, Jareth snapped into another role, that of King. He left the bed and begin to dress quickly. He looked at Sarah and said, "Love, I'd like you to come. I was going to wait to ask you this, but I'd like you on the Privy Council now."

Sarah was completely taken aback, but honoured to be asked. This was an incredibly large honour, especially as there were no women currently on the council. Hopefully she could change that. Quickly she dressed and went down the steps with Jareth.

Once in the council room, Sarah saw some familiar faces, and others she had not yet met. To her pleasant surprise, Eimile and Brielle were there as well. Eimile looked at her and squeezed her hand. "It's about time we've had women on this council!" she whispered in Sarah's ear.

~~~Ó~~~

After the meeting, Sarah's head was spinning with all of the information she needed to remember. She also learned other things; that being given the gift of strategy, she would be the main strategist for their kingdom. The other kingdoms would have their own Privy Councils, strategists, their own armies; but they would all be working together. Eimile, with her equine and fighting skills, was to be Head of Horse for the battle. In most kingdoms of the Otherworld, women fought alongside their men. Brielle was positioned as head healer, would be working with Ixonia and they would also be bringing down trauma surgeons from Above.

~~~Ó~~~

Most of the council left, but the family remained for breakfast. Cillian looked at Sarah and gave her a warm smile. "So, I understand my father came to see you last night."

"He did," nodded Sarah. "He bestowed some gifts upon Saoirse and I."

"I know you've been given the gift of strategy, but what about my little granddaughter?"

"Samildánach," said Jareth, his mouth full of bacon. Sarah glared at him.

"I think your wife is perfectly capable of speaking for herself," said Cillian gently.

Jareth caught Sarah's glare. "So it would seem," he said humbly. He couldn't forget this morning, and was hoping to pick up where they left off this afternoon. But if Sarah was angered enough, that would certainly not happen.

Sarah broke her glare and turned to Eimile. "So? I have been dying to know what happened last night!" She whispered.

Eimile's face broke into a wide smile, but she kept her eyes on her plate. "Not now," she said quietly. "Sometime today we will try to get together and I can give you all the details." Sarah reached over, grabbed her hand and squeezed it. Eimile looked at her with the most joyous expression Sarah had ever seen on her face.

After breakfast, Cillian smiled at Sarah and said, "So where is my little Gariníon?" Both Cillian and Brielle couldn't get enough of their first grandchild.

When the nanny brought Soairse into the room she saw her grandfather, squealed, and reached for him. Cillian scooped her up, held her in the air and wiggled her a bit. Saoirse laughed. It was an adorable sound and one that she had begun doing just lately.

Sarah happened to glance at the doorway leading to the foyer. Standing there, leaning against it, was an older Saoirse, this time maybe 15 or 16. She had tears running down her face. Sarah quietly got up and went to the doorway to speak to her. No one noticed.

"Sweetheart," she said quietly, "what's the matter? Is there something I can do?"

Saoirse shook her head, wiping the tears from her eyes and face. "No, I just wanted to be here for a little while."

"But you seem upset. What's wrong?"

Saoirse shook her head and swallowed hard. "Nothing. There's nothing anyone can do." And she vanished, this time leaving no glitter.

~~~Ó~~~

Roughly half an hour later, Cillian and Brielle were still playing with Saoirse. Jareth was sitting back, talking to Finn. Sarah, while still concerned about her teenaged Saoirse, had just began discussing with Eimile what had happened last night when a small goblin entered and announced there was someone at the door. Jareth told the goblin to show the visitor in. It was Tadgh. Hat in hand, he looked around the room. When his eyes rested on Eimile, the look on his face was so obviously enraptured that Sarah had to smile. Eimile's eyes shone. She stood up, telling her family, "I've got to go. We have a - a thing." Then she grabbed Tadgh's hand and left the room. He barely had time to wish everyone goodbye before she pulled him out.

Almost everyone in the room looked around, confused. Except for Finn and Sarah.

"And let's give a great big warm welcome to cluelessness!" Finn said, clapping his hands.

"What?" said Jareth, annoyed that he did not understand what was happening.

Brielle nodded her head suddenly, knowingly, and smiled.

"What do you think has been going on between your sister and Tadgh these past few months?" Finn asked. "It's something that _I_ noticed, of all people. I can't believe that_you_ didn't."

"They're friends," said Jareth. "They've been friends since childhood. Why shouldn't they spend time together?"

Sarah bit her lip, smiling, and looked at Jareth."Love," she said, "they've become a bit more than just friends…"

"No," he said, shaking his head. "Eimile doesn't do relationships. We all know that."

"She does now!" Laughed Finn.

The look of incredulity on Jareth's face made Sarah laugh. "You know, your little sister doesn't tell you everything she does."

Jareth just shook his head. "I can't believe I missed this."

"Well," said Finn, "You know now. And I, for one, cannot wait to see what happens."

~~~Ó~~~

**Lugh – LOO(k)**

**Gariníon = GAR(dh) – in – een - Granddaughter. You'll notice that Lugh uses this term for Sarah, as she is married to his grandson. Cillian also uses it for Saoirse.**

**Garmhac = GAR – wac – Grandson**

**InÍon Garphaíste = in – EEN GAR - hay - great granddaughter**

**Lughnasadh**** = LOO – na – sa – A Gaelic **

**festival marking the beginning of the harvest season. Historically, it was widely observed throughout Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man. Traditionally it is held on 1 August, or about halfway between the summer solstice and autumn equinox. Lughnasadh is one of the four Gaelic seasonal festivals, along with Samhain, Imbolc and Beltane. It corresponds to other European harvest festivals such as the Welsh Gŵyl Awst and the English Lammas. It is named for the god Lugh.**

**Lámfada****, = La – WAD – ah - ****"of the long arm," possibly for his skill with a spear or his ability as a ruler**

**Samildánach ****= sam – EEL – ee – gan – ugh – "Equally skilled in many arts"**

**Tuatha dé Danann = Thoo-a day DU -non (Also known as the people of Danu) A race of gods and demigods who ruled Ireland during a golden age and defeated the Formorians.**

**Tír na nÓg = teer – na – NOGE - also known as the land of eternal youth, among many other names. Tir na nÓg is depicted as an island paradise and supernatural realm of everlasting youth, beauty, health, abundance and joy. Its inhabitants are described as the Tuatha Dé Danann or the warriors of the Tuatha Dé, the gods of pre-Christian Ireland, who engage in poetry, music, and entertainment.**

**Samhain = sow – WENN – Samhain is a Gaelic festival marking the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter or the "darker half" of the year. Traditionally, it is celebrated from 31 October to 1 November as the Celtic day began and ended at sunset. This is about halfway between the autumn equinox and the winter solstice. It is one of the four Gaelic seasonal festivals, along with Imbolc, Bealtaine and Lughnasadh. Historically, it was widely observed throughout Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man. Similar festivals are held at the same time of year in other Celtic lands, for example the Brittonic Calan Gaeaf (in Wales), Kalan Gwav (in Cornwall), and Kalan Goañv (in Brittany); both Celtic branches are roughly as old as each other. It is believed that this is the one time of the year when the veils between the worlds of the living and the dead are the thinnest and most easy to penetrate. **


	21. A Change Is Gonna Come

"When we say things like "People don't change" it drives the scientists crazy. Because change is literally the only constant in all of science. Energy, matter, it's always changing. Morphing. Merging. Growing. Dying. It's the way people try not to change that's unnatural. The way we cling to what things were instead of letting them be what they are. The way we cling to old memories instead of forming new ones. The way we insist on believing, despite every scientific indication, that anything in this lifetime is permanent. Change is constant. How we experience change, that's up to us. It can feel like death, or it can feel like a second chance at life. If we open our fingers, loosen our grips, go with it, it can feel like pure adrenaline. Like at any moment we can have another chance at life." ~ Eimile Ó Rourke

They ran down the allé of apple trees holding hands and laughing. Suddenly they looked at one another and begin to laugh harder. Then, the laughter quickly faded, but the eye contact did not. They stopped running. She swallowed and licked her bottom lip. Never taking his eyes off her, he gently pushed her back against the trunk of the tallest tree behind her. Playfully, he pinned one of her hands against the tree and begin to kiss her. Her other hand went around his neck and her knees felt weak.

They were not aware of someone watching them from a second story window, hiding just behind the curtains.

Jareth's voice from behind her made her jump. "So what are you spying about now?" He came up from behind her and cupped both breasts as he leaned his chin on her shoulder, trying to see what Sarah had been watching out the window.

He chuckled. "It looks as though Tadgh is certainly a lucky man. I wonder why his king is not so lucky?" He fondled Sarah's breasts, still standing behind her.

She spun round, holding him slightly away from her with her hands both on his chest, looking sassy.

"Why? What have you done for me lately?" She asked in a singsong version of an old 80s tune she remembered.

"You know I never ask for more than I deserve

You know it's the truth

You seem to think you're God's gift to this earth

I'm telling you no way…"

She was dancing now, silkily sliding up and down his body, and all around him. Then she would stand back from him to reveal a bit of herself, twirl around again and rub up against him as she sang the song. She was smiling and almost giggling. Jareth was going out of his mind. Where did she learn to dance like this?

"You ought to be thankful for the little things

but little things are all you seem to give

You're always putting off what we could do today…"

"I'll show you what we can do today," he growled and reached for her, threw her on the bed and landed on top of her. They were both laughing.

Sarah had to have the last word. "Only if you're nasty," she sighed in a seductive, breathy and yes, a nasty little sneer.

"Where did you learn that song?" He asked, playfully pinning her wrists above her head.

"Oh, I think around the time I met you here the first time," she said. "I actually bought the record. My friends and I would dance to it in my room. Janet Jackson. We used to watch MTV and all the videos, and practice the dance moves…"

"Well, I don't know what this MTV was, but I would definitely like to see some more of those dance moves," he smiled.

She looked pointedly first at one wrist then the other, both pinned to the bed. "Well, you're going to need to let go of me first," she said.

He stared at the ceiling, like he was thinking. "Nay," he said. "Let's save the dance moves for another time. I have some other plans…"

~~~Ó~~~

Sarah woke from a light nap, lying on her side with Jareth's arm resting around her hip. Suddenly she sat up. Saoirse was sitting on the floor near the side of the bed. This time she was still a baby, not a preteen or a teenager. Still the baby she had just put down for a nap, and who was capable now of sitting up on her own. Sarah could feel the hematite bracelet designed to find her daughter that Cillian had given her buzzing and warm.

Saoirse had lately taken to transporting herself close to her mother or father when she was bored and alone. She was playing with her toes, but when she looked up and saw Sarah staring at her she laughed and held out both arms.

Sarah couldn't help but grin. She walked over to her little girl and picked her up. "You little páiste dána! What on earth are we going to do with you? I guess we're lucky that you only decided to travel within and around the castle. Hoggle is going to pitch a fit!"

Hoggle had been pulled in on many occasions to help locate the traveling baby. He took his job very seriously, and was completely made up when he was the first one to discover her. He had appointed himself her personal guardian.

Jareth had woken and now stood behind Sarah, his hands on her shoulders. "You know," he said, "if we keep picking her up and cuddling her when she does this, we are only encouraging her."

Sarah turned to him with a smile. "But she's so adorable! And she's still a baby. She's not going to understand discipline or anything!"

He rolled his eyes and sighed. He knew she was right, but both he and Sarah could never get over the worry they had that their little girl might transport herself to an unsafe situation.

There was banging on their bedroom door, and they could hear the frightened voice of Hoggle. He, too, had been given a hematite, charmed bracelet used to help locate the baby when she time traveled or transported herself.

"Sarah! Jareth! Are you in there? Let me in! Open the door! The little miss has gone traveling again, and I can feel that she might be in here! Is she in here!?" His voice was rising in pitch quite quickly.

Jareth looked at Sarah, who was wearing nothing but a slip of a nightgown. He himself had nothing on. He quickly grabbed a robe from the back of the door and tossed one to Sarah as well. She set the baby down on the bed in order to put on the robe, and Jareth, nodding at her, opened the door. Hoggle literally fell into the room, landing on the floor, right on his face. Sarah stifled a laugh.

Hoggle scrambled up as quickly as he could, and when he saw Saoirse, let out a huge sigh of relief. Then he noticed that both Sarah and Jareth were wearing nothing but robes - in the middle of the day. He could feel his face heating up and he quickly looked down at the floor, not wanting to know anything about what they may have been doing.

"So the little miss is safe, then," he said. His eyes remained glued to the carpet as he fumbled with his bracelets.

"Yes she is, Hogwart," said Jareth. "And it's a good thing she showed up when she did, and not half an hour earlier. She may have been traumatized." His eyes twinkled and he winked at Sarah.

Hoggle continued staring at the carpet, as if it could offer him some solace from his current mortification. "Well then," he mumbled, "I can leave now."

"I think that may be best, Hognose," smirked Jareth. "Why don't you take the baby to her nanny, while I violate her mother again?"

This was more than Hoggle could take. His face took on a shade of brightest scarlet, and he reached for the baby as quickly as possible, also leaving the room as quickly as possible, muttering something under his breath.

Jareth shut the door and locked it. He and Sarah were laughing loudly enough for Hoggle to hear them through the door, as he shook his head and waddled quickly awaydown the hallway to the nursery.

"I think you may have permanently traumatized him," giggled Sarah.

"It was worth it for the look on his face," chuckled Jareth.

Sarah approached her husband, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Now," she said, "what's this talk about violating anyone?" She was forcing him to walk backwards. Her eyes were locked on his. "Perhaps it's _my_ turn to violate _you_!" And she pushed him backwards onto the bed, landing with her knees astride him.

"Help! Help! I am being violated!" Jareth called out weakly. Sarah swallowed his words with a kiss.

~~~Ó~~~

Sarah and Eimile were practicing magic out in the garden. It was especially important for Sarah's magic skills to become stronger, with what would most likely be an upcoming war. This time she was working on her crystals again. They weren't turning to rabbits anymore, but some of them were just melting into a gelatinous clear goo that dripped through her fingers. Eimile was smirking.

"You can get that look off your face if you want to continue helping me," Sarah snapped, trying to wipe her hands off on the grass.

Eimile smiled apologetically. "I know. It's like shooting fish in a barrel. Both Jareth and I know how difficult these actually are. I'm sorry."

A tall dark-haired man suddenly rounded the corner. When Eimile looked at him, her face broke into a beautiful glow. He stepped behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist and kissing her on the cheek.

"And how is the magic instruction going this morning?" He asked Sarah, brightly.

Eimile turned back to look at him and gave a slight shake of her head. Sarah just wore a glum face.

"Hi, Tadgh. Still difficult, I'm afraid. At least I'm no longer adding to the rabbit population."

He laughed. He had a wonderful, contagious laugh. "Would you like to try some real animal magic?" Part of the reason that Tadgh was Head of Horse was his affinity with animals and his ability to call them when needed, among other things. He also had a strong Scottish brogue, unlike Jareth or Eimile. Tadgh's people were originally from an area a bit north of Scotland.

Sarah brightened. "I would love a break. What can we do?"

"Well," he thought aloud, "I know that you and Jareth both have matching black stallions. What's the name of yours?"

"Heathcliff," she said.

"I want you to picture yourself with him. I know you often choose to curry him yourself instead of the groom. Picture that, picture feeding him, riding him, patting his neck, and any other connections you have with him."

Sarah did this.

"Now call him to you, said Tadgh. "He's a canny horse, so I know he can lift the gate of his own stall if he wants to."

"Do I call him out loud or in my mind?" Sarah asked. When Tadgh assured her she could do either, she chose to call him aloud this first time. Everyone waited. And waited.

Suddenly the ground started to shake beneath their feet. Sarah looked down toward the stables which were out of sight. Then a fine black stallion appeared, Sarah could have sworn he was smiling. He slowed to a trot, approached them and nuzzled Sarah's neck as she laughed.

"See? This could come in very handy in battle. You can call any animal to you for assistance, if needs be. It's easier with the ones you have a direct connection with, but you could also do it with creatures that you're simply aware of, say, any of the cougars or bears, badgers in the woods."

Sarah was thrilled. It was so good to find some magic that she could I actually do! But it was not in her personality to give up on the crystals. Her stubborn streak had its advantages.

"Thank you so much, Tadgh. I'll definitely continue practicing this," she said.

"No worries," he said. "Now tell him to go back, and lock his own stall door. I'm headed there anyway so I can check."

This time Sarah visualized what she wanted Heathcliff to do. He whinnied briefly, then started trotting back toward the stables. Tadgh followed him. Eimile smiled at Sarah. "Tadgh can also summon other forest creatures, such as centaurs, dryads, the like. He was able to do that as a child. But you have to be careful with that, because centaurs and the others are definitely magical beings, not animals, and they're easily offended if you call them in the wrong way."

They spent the better part of an hour continuing to focus on crystals. They may have been more difficult, but they were extremely versatile and deadly if need be. Sarah was getting better and better at them.

Her greatest success with one was somewhat unintentional. She flicked her wrist, created a beautiful crystal and hurled it at a nearby apple tree - which promptly exploded and burst into flames. She covered her mouth and stared at Eimile, half in shock, and half in laughter.

She heard an impressed whistle behind her. Finn and Ixonia had been walking the gardens and they had just seen Sarah's handiwork.

"Aye, that'll do you," said Finn admiringly. "You've never been one to take any guff, that's for certain. I'd not start with you now."

Ixonia's eyes were large. "Nor me. But I feel sorry for the poor tree."

"I do too," agreed Sarah. "But did you _see_ that? I'm feeling positively _lethal_ right now!"

"As you should," smiled Finn, after waving his hand to put out the flaming tree, or what was left of it. "Wait till we get you started on archery instruction. Jareth will give you some swordplay practice, but we've got someone else who will get you started on a recurve bow. It's slightly harder to draw back then a longbow, but it's much more effective while riding or in forest brush, which is where you're most likely to need one. Right. Now why don't we all head back to the castle for a drink?"

Ixonia smiled at him indulgently, and turned around, her hands still on his arm. "Will you join us?" She asked.

Sarah wiped her brow with the back of her hand, looked at Eimile and said, "I am actually a bit warm. Some lemonade would be nice. Eimile?"

Once they reached the cool refuge of the castle, Finn headed straight for the sitting room, where he knew there was a bar set up complete with his favorite whiskey. Eimile joined him, but Sarah and Ixonia wanted lemonade, so Sarah walked down the hall to the kitchen.

Once she got there, she was surprised to find Cillian, sitting on a stool. He was tossing broken bits of cookie into the air and then catching them in his mouth. What surprised her further was the little four-year-old girl at his knee, laughing madly at his antics, with a cookie in her own hand.

Sarah spoke up, loudly. "Cillian!"

She really hadn't meant to use that tone of voice with the former king, but he was promoting something with Saoirse that both she and Jareth felt strongly about.

Cillian, suddenly caught, revealed a hangdog look of shame that Jareth sometimes showed as well. Sarah tried to keep the laughter out of her voice.

"She only wanted a cookie, Sarah," Cillian said, placatingly.

"But she's doing two things she shouldn't be doing right now. Time traveling without permission or observation, and breaking our rules about cookies before dinner." The little girl at her grandfather's knee looked up at her mother with large, innocent seeming eyes.

"And you, young lady. Don't you give me that face, it doesn't work on me. Come here."

Four-year-old Saoirse reluctantly walked up to her mother. Sarah held out her hand. "Give it."

This had happened before, so she knew exactly what to do. She laid the cookie in her mother's hand. "Now," Sarah said sternly, "give Mommy a hug." Sarah smiled and knelt down, giving a big hug with Saoirse hugging her back. Sarah then instructed her daughter to give her grandfather a hug as welL

"Right then," said Sarah briskly. "Are you good to go back to your right time?" The little girl nodded, the air shimmered, and she disappeared.

Sarah looked at her father-in-law. "Seriously Cillian!"

"Seriously what?" He asked, innocently.

"You're spoiling her rotten. I'm thrilled that you want to come over here almost every day to play with her, but all the toys you keep bringing her, and what with the time travel and the cookies and treats you're encouraging…"

"She's my first and only grandchild," he said, using the English word for grandchild instead of the Irish one, hoping to win Sarah over. She wasn't having it. She closed her eyes and sighed, shaking her head.

"Several of us are meeting for a drink in the sitting room," she said. "Jareth is meeting with the Elven king this afternoon, but Finn and Ixonia, Eimile and I will be there."

He shook his head regretfully. "No," he said. "I have a meeting myself about the same thing, with some of the forest folk. I should get to that." He rose, kissed Sarah on the cheek, and disappeared.

~~Ó~~

Sarah entered the sitting room with a tray of rose water lemonade, and found that Tadgh had joined them. He and Eimile were sitting next to each other on the sofa, Eimile's legs casually lying over Tadgh's lap. Sarah knew her mother would definitely not approve, but if they were Above, this would not be an issue at all. Saoirse was there as well, at her proper current age, and Spam, Sarah's goblin "lady in waiting" of sorts, was entertaining her. Spam, as well as all of the castle goblins, was completely in love with her. They all spent several hours talking, drinking, laughing, and throwing jibes back-and-forth.

Jareth appeared in the doorway eventually, looking grim. Sarah approached him for a kiss, and to pull him into the conversation. He held off on the kiss, but put his arm around her waist. Everyone was looking at him.

"I've just met with Oisín, the Elven king. They are suffering attacks far worse than ours. I believe it is best now that we go on the offensive as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, that means life as we know it is going to change drastically. I will be making an official declaration of war against the Formorians with the council members and the other kings of the Otherworld tomorrow."

~~~Ó~~~

Thanks for waiting for this last chapter. It's been a while getting it out, I know, but the rest should be forthcoming more quickly than this. The only real Irish expressions in this chapter are:

páiste dána = PAW-ish-teh DAY-nah. – naughty child

Oisín = oh-SHEEN - King of the elves, named for a famous character in ancient Celtic history who lived with the Fae for more than 300 years.

Song by Sarah: What Have You Done For Me Lately, Janet Jackson

It's fun writing Sarah empowering herself in different ways, even though it is unfortunate that she has to do so because of the upcoming war. (Story four! I can guarantee it will have blood, suspense, violence, sex, and humor as well, not to mention the warmth that these characters have for one another. Trust me, it'll be worth the wait!) You will see the others start to work on demonstrating and improving their battle skills as well.

Chapter titles stolen from:

Can You Hear Me – David Bowie

The Days We've Yet To Meet – Flogging Molly

Everything In It's Own Time – Indigo Girls

Come As You Are – Nirvana

It Won't Take Long

Learning To Fly – Pink Floyd

If You Could See Me – The Script

Photograph – Ringo Starr/George Harrison

Snow Globe World – lyrics from Erasure, World Be Gone

Green Growith The Holly – Renaissance era folk tune. Supposedly written by Henry Tudor.

Absolute Beginners - David Bowie

Miracle – Coldplay

I'm On Top Of The World - imagine Dragons

A Common Case Of Disappearing- Amber Rubarth

You Gave Me The Answer - Paul McCartney

Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses – U2

One More Chance – Madonna

Turn Off The Lights – Teddy Prendergrass

Open Your Eyes – Snow Patrol

The Gift - Johnny Mathis

A Change Is Gonna Come – Sam Cooke

And the title of this story, You'll Be In My Heart, is from a beautiful tune by Phil Collins, written for his daughter.

Feicfidh mé ar ball thú!

See you later!

Maire


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